Voices
by Glory For Sleep
Summary: "We all have our own side to a story, and our own voice to tell it in. To be brave, we have to know we're not alone. To know we're not alone, we have to listen." May/Drew. Book 2 of the "Cadence Of Their Fear" trilogy.
1. In Ominous Skies

**AN: **This is the sequel to "You're Not Alone" and book 2 of the "Cadence Of Their Fear Trilogy". This is a May/Drew romance series, with a touch of monsters. While I do go over what happened in "You're Not Alone" enough to where you probably don't need it to understand what's going on, I still do suggest reading it before starting this one. That said, enjoy the read!

* * *

Darkness covered everything.

It didn't surprise her. Since this all began, nothing surprised her. The black clouds that loomed in the sky never moved, built from the numerous fires that consumed various parts of Petalburg City. Like most other senses of security, civilization crumbled beneath the screams of the innocent and the roars of the bloodthirsty; the lightning that clawed from above and the blood that painted the ground. She didn't know whether it was day or night. It reminded her so much of the city where this nightmare first began.

But, she didn't run.

She stood on the rooftop of an apartment building, which stayed strong, even with the rest of the city in ruins – a picture of a once vibrant world torn to shreds by this apocalypse. If there were any survivors, they hid wherever they could, trying to suppress the anxiousness in their hearts from the mutated pokemon that stalked the streets, hungry for flesh.

Fusions.

She knew about them. The entire world knew about them. They went by many names now. Monsters. Demons. Hunters. Beasts. They consisted of different parts of pokemon – chimera-like creatures with the minds of killers, and the need to spread the very disease that had changed them into such monstrosities. They went after humans. They went after pokemon. They went after everything but themselves, as they followed the mission implanted into their cores: kill the innocent, change those they didn't, and give the world a reason to be scared again.

Her fingers tightened around her rifle. She rested it by her side as she brought her other hand up to tap the side of her helmet. The visor flashed. While it seemed to reflect the blackness of the clouds above, it allowed her to see the body heat of any living beings that crossed the streets below. Despite how dead Petalburg appeared to be, the forms of fusions moved in colors of red and yellow, as they sniffed the air in search of signs of fear – the inevitable aspect of nature they hunted by.

She didn't care for them. They were as normal as the innocent pokemon that occupied the world before their arrival. Though she would shoot any of them if they found out her position and confronted her, she focused primarily on the tall business building a mile away.

Like a beacon, it seemed in perfect shape when compared to the ruins all around it. A metal wall surrounded its base. It protected the armored humans that scouted the outside, guns in their hands, on the lookout for any fusions - or anything else that threatened their business – that could manage to make it in.

She tapped the side of her helmet again. Her visor zoomed in on the seventh floor of the building. With her thermal vision still on, she could see the shape of a round man as he paced the floors of his office. His hand held something against his ear. A cell phone, she presumed. He seemed to pull his head back in a heavy laugh. She gritted her teeth behind her lips.

Arrogance, where he didn't care who died for his cause, for as long as he was safe in the end.

With another tap of her helmet, her visor switched back to normal. Petalburg City fell back into darkness, as apocalyptic as the rest of the world.

She grabbed her rifle and hooked it across her back. Armor covered every inch of her body, a mixture of hard leather and metal plating – colors of maroon and black that camouflaged her against the background. A cloth-like garment, attached to her belt, swung over the top part of her leg and hid the handgun sheathed at her thigh. Despite how heavy everything appeared, she moved fluidly as she ran to the edge of the rooftop and crossed over to the building in front of it. Her movements were silent, feline-like; her armor fit so close to her body it might as well have been another skin.

She used the apartments' rooftop across from the business building to jump over the metal wall around its base. She landed on the grass, unheard by the guards that scouted the area, where she then crept up to the corner and looked at the entrance into the building. Two armed guards stood by its glass doors, nervous eyes focused ahead, very well aware of the fusions that existed beyond the metal wall in front of them.

"Hey!"

She spun – and met the glare of a guard when he crossed the corner behind her.

He pointed his rifle at her and fired.

She rolled to the side. The bullets blazed along the ground behind her, their barks echoing throughout the hollow air. She grabbed one of the knives hooked along her belt and threw it at the guard, where it lodged itself in his neck. He choked and reached for his throat as it gushed with blood. His rifle fell to the ground. Seconds later, he fell beside it.

Voices rose from the other corner. More guards appeared, including the two that had stood by the door.

In one quick movement, she grabbed her rifle from her back and fired at the guards. They fell before they could pull their own triggers. The grass turned red beneath them, but she didn't acknowledge it as she swiftly moved over them and entered the building.

Having heard the commotion outside, guards piled through the doors that lined along the walls of the hallways and fired their weapons.

Like before, she dodged them, using the furniture around her as shields. She ran close to each guard and sliced their throats with the other knives on her belt, before she dodged another array of bullets, and unsheathed the handgun on her thigh and silenced anymore that appeared from the stairs. As their bodies fell, she made her way up the steps, climbing from floor to floor, killing anyone that opposed her.

Even as she reached the seventh level, she remained untouched, her armor clean of any blood splatter. She still moved with feline grace, to where she silently stabbed any guards that hadn't been alerted of her presence. She used her visor's thermal vision to locate the room that held the business's leader. He was down the hall.

She crossed it.

Stealth wasn't needed. Not anymore.

The round man stumbled when she kicked the door down and moved in. He fell back into his chair and dropped his cell phone, as well as a briefcase filled with vials of a green-colored liquid. His pig-like eyes stared at her with recognition.

"_Ar-Artemis_," he said.

She said nothing. She pointed her handgun at him.

The man swallowed hard. "I-I-" He backed up against the wall. "Why are you here? Are you here to kill me?"

Again, Artemis said nothing. She took a step forward, as if to provoke him to say his last words.

The man furrowed his brows. "Who hired you to kill me? Damn bastards! I provide them with the cure for the Chimera Virus for a reasonable fee, and what happens? I get bit in the freakin' ass!"

Artemis tightened her hold on her gun.

"Oh, I get it!" the man said. He let out a nervous laugh. "Someone hired you to kill me, because I had my men stole those batches of the cure from survivor sanctuaries all over the region, right? Well, too freakin' bad! It's an arcanine-eat-arcanine world now! If I can get it, I'll take it. Big companies will pay big money for the cure, considering the situation we're all in now."

He looked back at her, at the gun she held, and his face fell again.

"Listen," he said with a forced grin, "I'm just like you! Okay? I'm just trying to survive in this world torn apart by these monsters that appeared out of nowhere. I mean, the world's gone to end. There's no saving it! Why should I bother to keep others alive if it doesn't benefit me or will all end up in vain?" He swallowed hard again. "You're Artemis! You're renowned and feared just as much as those monsters are! I respect you, and I will gladly pay you more than whoever hired you, if you let me go."

He began to move to his desk as Artemis moved closer, still silent, her gun still pointed at him. He eyed the curves of her body – the way her suit seemed to fit her perfectly. He licked his lips.

"I can pay you in other ways, too, you know." A sly smile crossed his face. "I bet you're beautiful than most gals behind all that armor. I can help you stay safe. I can offer top security. Why'd you think I stuck one of my businesses in Petalburg despite all those monsters that fill the streets? Because I know how they work. Strength comes in numbers. So how about you and me work together? I mean, even an assassin will take a better offer if she sees it, right?"

Artemis paused for a second.

Then, she readied her gun.

The man squealed and scurried closer to his desk.

"Alright! Alright! You win! You're not a woman of negotiation! I get that! Please, great Artemis! Spare me!"

He buried his face in one hand. His shoulders shook as he sobbed. Meanwhile, his other hand slowly crept up the underside of his desk, where he fingered a hidden button.

"Oh please, Artemis," he said with another fake sob. "Spare me! Because if you don't…"

He raised his head and snarled.

"Then you can die!"

He pushed the button.

Across the room, the wall slid open. A growl erupted from the darkness inside. A pair of red eyes flashed open.

Artemis spun around.

And right as the fusion lunged out to bite her.

Artemis raised her arm. The fusion's teeth sunk into her metal plating. Before it could pass it, she pushed it back. It fell to the ground with a whimper. A shackle circled its neck and secured it to the floor through a chain, so that though it could reach Artemis, it couldn't reach the man that imprisoned it.

The said man laughed. He pulled a gun out from his desk and pointed it at Artemis.

"Now who's the scared one?" he asked with a smirk.

He fired.

Artemis dove to the ground to dodge the bullets. Out of the corner of her visor, she saw the briefcase filled with the vials of green liquid.

Cures for the Chimera Virus. The cures the man had stolen.

She looked back at the fusion as it orientated itself and glared at her. Quickly, she got up and dodged the next set of bullets the man fired from his gun. She crossed the floor, grabbed the briefcase, spun around, and fired her own gun.

The man stopped. He looked at himself, and he grinned.

"You missed," he sneered.

Artemis only shook her head.

The man paused as his fusion pet snarled. Slowly, he turned around.

Smoke rose from the gap in the fusion's chain – where Artemis' bullet had sliced through.

The man didn't have time to run. The fusion lunged at him, claws bared. He screamed as the fusion sunk its teeth into the meaty flesh on his neck.

Ignoring the scene, Artemis charged toward the room's window. She broke through to the outside. Pieces of glass scraped against her armor. She fell toward the ground, seven floors down. Quickly, she grabbed a pokeball from her belt and released a charizard, who intercepted her fall and caught her on its back.

"Target dead," she muttered as she stood. "Head toward our client."

The charizard acknowledged her with a grunt and flew outward into the sky.

Artemis tightened her hold on the briefcase. Beyond the black clouds from above, she could see a red horizon - like fire, like blood.

But, it didn't surprise her.

If she had fear, remorse, any emotion, then she stopped feeling it long ago.


	2. Ghosts of Enfer

**-May-**

_May Maple…is dead!_

My eyelids flew open.

I arched back against the hard surface behind me and inhaled as much air as I could, as if something had sealed my lungs shut and nearly suffocated me. Splotches of white clouded my vision. I could feel myself slowly slip back into darkness, but I pushed it away and forced myself to fight the fatigue that filled me.

Memories. They flashed through my head - hundreds of pictures. They came together so suddenly they made my head swirl. A past that felt so close; yet, for some reason, I couldn't reach it. My mind was obscured away by a black fog.

My eyes still widened, I tilted my head. My nails scratched against a smooth metallic surface. I was on a table – a metal table. The whirring and beeping sounds all around me were too loud, the machines large and menacing. I groaned at the pain that shot through me, where it throbbed from the various needles that poked out from my arms, connected to these very machines. I wanted to sit up, but I couldn't. I still struggled to breathe. I would suffocate if I didn't.

"May!"

The voice echoed throughout the lab-like room. It rang through my head and made it hurt. I cried out from the pain; it felt even worse than from the needles that protruded from me. I couldn't turn anymore. The only thing I could do was arch against the metal table again. My weakness constrained me and prevented me from doing anything else. Nausea grew in my stomach.

"May!"

That same voice. A figure appeared beside my table.

I tried my best to look up at her. The overhead lights obscured her, to where she only appeared as a shadow. Her green eyes glowed, though – bright enough to where I could see the concern in them.

"May," she said, her voice now calm, "May, it's alright. Calm down, and breathe slowly. Your lungs will work on their own soon enough."

I listened to her words as best as I could. I still felt like I couldn't breathe, but I let myself quiet down and rest against the table. Pain shot through me again. I groaned, both from that and my nausea.

"Can you breathe now?" the woman asked.

I closed my eyes and exhaled through my mouth. The ache in my lungs dulled, until it was no longer there.

I looked back at the woman. Her figure seemed to define itself as my vision grew clearer. Blonde hair ran down her shoulders and back, her face smooth, to where she didn't look older than thirty. She was dressed in a white lab coat, her eyes an even brighter green than they appeared before.

In response to her question, I nodded.

"Good," she said. She turned and checked the machine I was connected to. "It looks like you've stabilized well. There were a lot of risks involved in finally waking you up, but I think the worst part is over."

I wanted to ask what she meant by that. I wanted to ask where I was, who she was, and what had happened. More memories flashed through my head, but none of them helped me remember why everything had gone black in the first place.

"Is May awake?"

Another voice. Male. His words were quick, as he uttered that sentence over and over, from what sounded like the doorway out of the room. His voice, it was familiar. Another memory came to me, but it was too foggy to make out.

"Yeah," the woman said with a small smile, "she made the transition just fine. Just a few breathing problems, but her lungs seem to be working now according to these measurements."

I breathed in and out, as if to prove her point.

"Excellent!" the male voice said. He let out a childish chuckle. "Excellent, excellent, excellent! Took everything long enough!"

Footsteps resounded across the room, where the man in question walked up to the other side of my table.

I looked up at him.

He had spiky, black hair that fell over his face. Hints of stubble traced along the edge of his shaven jaw and bags sat beneath his dark blue eyes. Despite his own white lab coat, which contributed to the rest of his civilized apparel, there was something about him that completely contradicted it. Something rugged. Something familiar. The memory that had come with his voice reappeared in my head.

My face fell with realization.

"El…Ellis?" I croaked, regardless of how my dry throat burned with the words.

The man grinned.

"You remember!" he said. "You remember!"

He jumped up and danced around.

I swallowed hard. More memories came back to me, mainly of how I had wondered what had happened to Ellis Bane after the Enfer City incident. Now, here he was, but he seemed older than the last time I had seen him. Not a lot older, but the age lines around his eyes filled me with bewilderment, though he still moved with enough energy to leave me even more amazed.

"She remembers me, Moira!" Ellis said with a joyful twirl. "My friend remembers me!"

The blonde – Moira – shook her head, an amused smile on her face. "And I'm glad she does, Ellis." She looked at me. "It's good to see your memory's still intact, May. Most memories will be a little foggy, but as with how you remembered Ellis, everything will return to you in time."

I opened my mouth. "I…"

Moira shook her head. "You're still weak, because you've been out for quite a while. Though we were able to prevent any major bodily losses through IV nutrients, as well as these machines here, you're still going to be a little exhausted." She glanced at a machine. "It might hurt to talk. Some of your muscles will probably be sore because of all the processes we had to put your body through, but that should also dull in time. Just take it easy."

Processes? I met her eyes and suppressed the pain in my throat:

"Where…am I?" My eyes flashed, as more memories became clear. "What happened?"

At that, Ellis stopped dancing. He strode back up to my table.

"We almost lost you. Very bad. But," he added with a grin, "we were able to find you before it was too late. Bring you here, and immediately start before you were too far gone."

"Too far gone?" I asked. "What…what do you mean? Start with what?" I looked around at the needles in my arms and the machines. "What is all this?"

Ellis poked at an IV machine beside me. "See these? Nutrients meant to keep your body working, but they were also used to bring your body back to life."

My eyes widened. "W-what?"

Then, another memory hit me.

A man with red eyes. Gunfire. Coldness; it had surged through my body after he shot me. Darkness had overtaken my sight, and right as he announced that I was dead – that he had successfully killed me.

More and more details came back to me in bits and pieces. But, as I remembered it all, weakness flooded through me all over again.

"I died there," I slowly said. I looked at Moira, and then at Ellis. "I died when he shot me. When _Jericho Karvás_ shot me."

Ellis frowned, but he nodded. "Yes. Bad man. Very bad man. He shot you, and he left thinking that you were truly gone." He smirked. "But me and Moira found you, and we brought you back to life! Back from the dead!" He bit his thumbnail. "Hn. Hope Arceus doesn't mind."

"How did you find me?" I asked. "Jericho had me meet him in that secluded office in LaRousse. How did you know where I was?"

"Even after we learned that Katherine Verdana was dead," Moira said, "we knew that she was only the beginning."

"The _beginning_? What do you mean by that?"

"Verdana was biggest, scariest demon," Ellis said, "but she wasn't the only one. With her gone, the others would come after whoever killed her once they found out who it was. Jericho was one of these people. He talked to you, found out you were the real hero, and took you out. Bang!" He danced again. "But we brought you back to life! We're smarter than those meanies!"

I looked at Moira. She shook her head again, though she didn't seem amused this time.

"There's a lot you don't know," she said. "Come on. Let's see if you can walk without all these machines now. We'll explain everything along the way."

* * *

Moira and Ellis led me down the halls of their laboratory. My legs ached with each step I took, but the weakness that filled them had dissipated. My eyes scanned over the white walls and tiled flooring of the laboratory. There were no windows – nothing to help me see the outside world, and any other rooms we passed seemed completely empty. It was as if Ellis and Moira were the only ones here. I wanted to ask where we were, but I pushed the question aside as Moira moved to my side to ensure I stayed upright.

"Katherine Verdana was the lead scientist to the Chimera Project," she said, conveying information I had just begun to remember. "The Chimera Virus is the mutagen that transforms both regular pokemon and humans into those fusion monsters you saw down in Enfer City. Verdana created the Chimera Virus in hopes of unleashing it onto the world and, eventually, gaining control of the regions by using fear and the fusions to create anarchy. Before she could do this, though, she had to test the Virus."

"So she built Enfer City," I said.

"Exactly. But, when the Virus was still in its building stage, Verdana had various teams of scientists beneath her control that helped her in finishing the Virus and its cure. One of the scientists was Ellis, before he broke away from the experiment altogether."

"Bad," Ellis said as he walked in front of us, "very bad."

"When Enfer City was built to test the Virus," Moira continued, "a few teams beneath Verdana's command stayed on the surface to watch over the results from outside, and guide Kruismara and the fusions when they reached the shore after Enfer was destroyed. One of the head members of these groups of scientists was Verdana's official protégé, Jericho Karvás."

My eyes widened. "What? How could the police not find out about this?"

"Jericho hid it well," Moira said. "Even alongside his connection with the Chimera Virus, his links in the detective business had taught him how to evade the law. When the report that Kruismara and the fusions had been destroyed, Jericho was furious. He was even more furious at the news that Verdana had been killed. He interviewed as many survivors as he could in hopes of finding the person that had murdered his mentor. When he discovered that that was you, well…"

I stopped in place when another memory came back to me.

"Kruismara," I said. "The fusions. Before Jericho killed me, the news had broadcasted that they had survived Enfer's detonation, reached the surface, and attacked Lilycove." I met Moira's eyes. "What's happened since then?"

At that, Moira swallowed hard. She turned her head to meet Ellis' eyes, which then grew dark.

My heart hammered against my chest. "Have the fusions been stopped?" More memories filled my head – memories that were, this time, close to home.

My parents. Max. Soledad. Lionel. My pokemon.

Drew.

"Where's Drew?" I asked. "Where is everyone? How long have I been out?"

"May…" Moira began.

"How much damage have the fusions caused? Are they still out there?"

"May," Moira said again. "We found your body shortly after your death because we knew then that Jericho would come after you. But, it took a long time to bring you back to life."

I shook my head. I wondered what she meant. Possible answers rushed through my head – and more memories – and it made it all hurt again.

"What do you mean by a long time?" I asked. "What is this place exactly?"

"May-"

I spun around. Down the hall, I could see what looked like a door – a large, circular door, with a wheel on the front that reminded me of the vault inside a bank. I made my way toward it, ignoring how Moira and Ellis called after me. When I reached the door, I turned the wheel-like handle. My muscles ached with protest.

Drew. My family. My friends. The outside world. I had to see what happened to everything.

Soon, the large door clicked open, and I pushed it ajar and ran out.

Cold air brushed across my skin. I was outside. As I climbed a small hill that led up from the door, I nearly stumbled back at the sight that met me at the top.

It was a city – a city in ruins.

Black clouds covered the sky. They mixed with colors of grey and red, and lightning flashed across their surfaces. Debris surrounded me. Ash filled the air; the fires that sprouted up from the skeletal buildings that still stood spewed it out like lava. Beyond the apocalyptic setting, a dark sea brushed across a bloody shore, where ships of various types laid on their sides, some visible against the horizon as they sunk beneath the waves. At that, the city's name came back to me.

Slateport.

My eyes watered. I couldn't see anything. No living people or pokemon. Everything was dead. Slateport was nothing, just like Enfer had been after Kruismara's attack.

Steps resounded from behind me. I turned and met the eyes of Moira and Ellis as they emerged from the door in the ground and climbed up to my side. That's what their laboratory had been – a vault, meant to protect them from the outside world and the things that stalked it.

"What happened?" I asked. I fought back tears. "Did the fusions do all of this?"

Ellis nodded with a frown.

"What else have they destroyed?" I asked. "Have they reached other cities?" I felt the blood drain from my face. "Oh Arceus. Drew! Have they reached LaRousse? Or Petalburg?"

"May," Moira said. She sighed. "_All_ of the Hoenn region has been destroyed by the fusions."

Weakness flooded me. "W-what? H-how? How did they destroy everything so fast?"

Moira and Ellis exchanged glances. Then, Moira looked at me.

"Five years," she said.

"What?"

Moira swallowed, her own face pale.

"May, Kruismara and the fusions attacked the surface five years ago, and Jericho killed you five years ago. You've been dead for five years."


	3. On the Path to Decay

**AN: **To fit with the "different voices" theme, the POV is going to alternate between May and Artemis with each chapter throughout the story. Though I'm going to try to follow this pattern, there may be some chapters where the POV stays the same, such as if I had a chapter that I had to cut in half due to length. Because of this, I will always list who's narrating which chapter, even if the pattern is followed.

* * *

**-Artemis-**

"Char…"

I looked up when my charizard muttered his name. He craned his neck and looked at me. I gazed past him to see the skyscrapers of Rustboro appear from the horizon. Streaks of black smoke rose up from the city grounds, but I didn't need a reminder on how all of Hoenn reflected what I saw back at Petalburg. By my clients' calls, I had traversed most of the other regions multiple times and saw how the fusions had ravaged them all, until they were skeletons; their flesh – their life – torn off by the Chimera Virus.

I tightened my hold on the briefcase I had held since completing my assignment in Petalburg. Then, I knelt down and patted my charizard's neck. It had taken a few hours to fly from Petalburg to Rustboro, but my pokemon had never faltered during any long trips.

He acknowledged me with a grunt and lowered to the ground.

The cobblestone streets of Rustboro ended right before the city's main gate. Outside of it, the forests of Hoenn stretched to the horizon. Their leaves were dark with the colors of death and decay. Despite that green could still be seen in the trees' higher branches, it made no difference. It still added to how grim Rustboro looked – the frame to a black and white tragedy, the corner chipped to make way for the dark sea that bordered the city's western edge.

I stepped off my charizard once he landed and returned him to his pokeball. With the briefcase in hand, I looked around for a sign of the grocery mart my client had asked me to meet him in once I took care of his problem. A few buildings ahead, I could see the painted corners of the city's main food store - large and deserted, with shopping carts that littered its barren parking lot.

I tapped the side of my helmet. The thermal vision came on, and through it I could tell how many fusions lay ahead, stalking the streets. There weren't many, and there were none in the store itself. I moved ahead and slipped through the alleyways. If any fusions confronted me, I could easily kill them. But, I didn't want to start an uproar that would bring more in and scare off my client.

When I reached the store, I pushed open the automatic doors and walked in. Dying ceiling lights marked the various aisles in flickers, which had been picked clean by passing looters. Broken jars and glasses covered the floor – evidence to the chaos provoked in Rustboro's streets when the fusions first arrived. The entire store seemed deserted, but I expected nothing else. I pushed the doors shut behind me and moved forward.

Silently, I crept along the outer walls of the store and searched for any sign of my client. I still held the briefcase filled with the cures for the Chimera Virus. I brushed my other hand over the pokeballs and knives that lined my belt, to check if they were all in place in case of trouble. The cape that hung over my thigh hid away the handgun at its side, while my main rifle was still hooked along my back.

Ahead, I saw that the door into the store manager's main office was wide open. A bright light stretched out from inside, like a beacon in a black sea. I followed it, hearing voices, to where I then emerged into a medium-sized room with desks, chairs, computer equipment, and the usual fake plants that sat in the corners for decorative purposes.

On the chair to the main desk was a man no older than forty, his head clean of any hair, his indigo suit matching his dark eyes. Jameson Warren. My client.

He turned in his chair to look at me. A sense of surprise crossed his gaze. He straightened his tie, as if embarrassed by the fact.

"Wow," he said, "I honestly thought you weren't going to make it, definitely since you gave me the time to come here _before_ you even left to do the job."

I said nothing. I turned my head. Out of the edge of my visor, I could see the shapes of two men sitting in the shadowed corners of the room. Their eyes were on me, narrowed and unmoving.

"Don't mind them," Warren said. "They're just bodyguards, for my own gain. Now…" He leaned forward. "I take it you went through with it? Did you kill Jackson Raymore?"

I looked back at him.

Warren narrowed his eyes. "Where's the proof I asked you to bring back?"

I dropped the briefcase I had brought with me from Raymore's office and slid it toward Warren.

He reached forward, grabbed the suitcase, and flipped it open. He eyed the vials of the Virus cure. Another grin – a devious one – stretched across his face. He let out an arrogant chuckle and leaned back into his chair, his arms behind his head, the briefcase still on his lap.

"Ah, that's wonderful!" he said. "That fat pig had been a thorn in my side for months now. With the world we live in, there's no time for rivalry between businesses still trying to make a living, am I right? Besides, why hassle myself with the competition if I can just hire people like you? I gotta say, you definitely didn't disappoint." He grabbed a vial of the cure and gazed at the green liquid inside. "Amazing how much money this stuff still brings in. Even if those monsters are spreading like a disease, this is one of the few senses of hope humanity and pokemonkind have left. Sad, really. But I'm not here to lament."

He looked at me.

"Now, I suppose you want your end of the deal?" he asked.

I nodded.

He grabbed a different briefcase from the side of his chair and opened it in front of me. Dollars filled the inside, stacked in groups of 50,000 in currency. He shot another grin at me when I looked at him, and he reached into the briefcase I had given him, pulling out five vials of the cure for the Chimera Virus.

"And as promised," he said, slipping the vials into the inside pockets of the money case, "a few batches of the cure, as an extra gift."

He closed the money case and placed it on the floor in front of him.

I didn't move. Instead, I looked back at the two guys in the shadows, their eyes still on me. Warren's bodyguards, used for protection from any fusions.

My eyes strayed downward. They wore black leather armor; various guns, knives, and pokeballs sheathed along their chests, belts, and legs. I could see the faint hint of a red-colored tattoo on the guards' exposed shoulder blades.

The shape of a luxray, with its head reared up in a ferocious roar.

Recognition filled me, and I looked back at Warren.

"Something wrong?" he asked. An amused smile grew on his face. "Here's your payment. Why don't you take it and run along?"

I looked back at his bodyguards. They got up from their seats and walked toward me.

Quickly, I grabbed the handgun from my thigh and pointed it at the two men.

"Oh what a shame," Warren said with mock disappointment. "She caught on too soon. Well, I guess that's what I get for making it so blatantly obvious that I planned to kill two pidgey with one stone here."

A shuffle came from the door. More men and women, dressed in black leather armor, came in and pointed their own guns at me. That red tattoo of a roaring luxray covered each of their shoulders.

"A few of the towns in the other regions have bounties on your head, Artemis," Warren said. "And they're really high. You killed my rival in business, but if I bring your body in I get back at least triple of what I paid you to take him out." He grinned. "Win-win." He gestured at the armed humans all around me. "So, I thought I'd ask for a little backup in this task. I'm sure you know of the Crimson Call clan?"

My eyes switched back to the men and women, clad in leather armor and guns pointed straight at me. The Crimson Call - a mercenary group that had formed shortly after the fusion attack, built by survivors hoping to use their weaponry expertise to gain money and security without having to make a personal commitment to any military or state.

'_Just bodyguards' my ass._

A large mercenary stepped forward and bore his jagged teeth, rifle in hands.

"We've been hired to hunt you on many occasions, Artemis," he snarled, "and we're not letting you get away this time!"

I grit my teeth behind my lips. There had been many past occasions where the Crimson Call had confronted me. This was nothing I wasn't already used to.

Warren laughed. "It looks like the hunter has become the hunted. She doesn't seem to be a woman of many words, but with a case like this, I would suppose that even she would make an exception. So, Artemis, any last words?"

My eyes switched between the different mercenaries. There were too many. Even if I could fire off a few rounds from my gun, I would still be killed. I couldn't move, either, without being shot. I needed a distraction.

Slowly, I moved my hand until my palm fully covered the grip of my handgun. The mercenaries never noticed my movements, too intent on keeping their eyes on the rest of me. Using my thumb, I pushed a hidden switch toward the back of the grip, where a small slot in the side opened up beneath my fingers. I felt a tiny sphere come out, and I maneuvered the ball in my palm until I could push in the top of it with my thumb. It shook, set. I only had a few seconds to move now.

I opened my hand and dropped the tiny sphere, and I dove to the side.

The mercenaries growled and prepared to fire.

But, before they could even aim their guns, the tiny sphere exploded, filling the room with a bright white flash.

I heard the groans of Warren and the Crimson Call as the flash bomb left them blind and deaf. My helmet had protected my own eyes and ears, but I knew that the bomb's effects were only temporary. I grabbed the briefcase filled with money and ran for the door. I emerged into the store's main aisles and made my way down past the strewn shelves and piles of rubble.

"Dammit! Don't let her escape!"

I looked over my shoulder. The Crimson Call stumbled out of the manager's office. Many of the members still seemed disorientated, but others had regained their senses. They ran after me, firing their weapons.

The bullets hit the floor behind me, puncturing the linoleum. I dove for a fallen shelf and used it as cover. I heard the bullets fly all around me. I grabbed the rifle on my back, stood up, and fired as many rounds as I could toward the large horde of mercenaries coming at me. Some fell, but I had to duck again before I was hit.

I moved and headed toward the door. Following what I had done with my handgun, I pushed a hidden switch on the grip of my rifle, opened up the bomb slot, and dropped a few of the spheres into my hand. Then, I threw them onto the ground as I ran for the door. Almost there-

"Scizor!"

I turned.

A red form shot toward me, eyes narrowed, pincers open.

I put up the barrel of my rifle. The scizor's pincer clamped onto it right before it could hit me. It hissed. I struggled against its grip, still holding tightly onto the briefcase, still moving to dodge the endless gunfire aimed in my direction. A Crimson Call pokemon, I figured, but I didn't have room to send out my charizard to combat it.

I kneed it in the stomach. It bent over, and I took that chance to slam my fist against the side of its head. It stumbled toward the side, where its strong grip on my rifle snapped the gun in half. As it fell to the floor, I looked at my gun, in which the barrel and muzzle had been torn off, stray bullets falling to the ground.

_Fuck._

I looked back at the approaching mercenaries. Then, I ran for the door and pushed my way through. I emerged back into Rustboro City, dropping the last bomb I had. I grabbed Charizard's pokeball from my belt and released him. He spread his wings, and I climbed onto his back.

"Fly," I said.

He acknowledged me with a grunt and took off into the air.

I looked back as we ascended. The Crimson Call ran out of the store, Warren not far behind. They looked around, searching for me.

"You can't run forever!" one mercenary called out. "We'll find you! This isn't over!"

I raised my broken rifle, my thumb on a button at the bottom of the grip.

Warren moved forward, still looking for me. His eyebrows then rose, as if he had noticed something. He looked down and turned his foot, where he had stepped on the last bomb I had dropped.

He swallowed hard.

And I pushed the button.

The bomb exploded, as did the ones I had dropped within the store. The roar of an eruption echoed throughout Rustboro. The fire consumed Warren and the mercenaries and blocked out their cries. Smoke billowed out from the flames, reaching for the sky. I could still feel the heat despite how far Charizard had flown from it. The smoke continued to build higher and higher – a thick, black wall – and no one emerged from it.

I sighed and turned back around. I looked at the briefcase in my hands. I knew who needed this and whom I needed to deliver it to.

But…

I looked at my broken rifle.

"Head toward Ratchet first," I said.

Charizard nodded and flew forward.


	4. Broken Promises

**-May-**

I slipped my hand beneath my shirt and moved my fingers over my abdomen. There, toward my side. I could feel the indent where one of Jericho's bullets had entered my body – a hole that had closed over with time, though I could still tell where it was just by the feel of the rough skin that covered it. Bile rose up in my throat at the thought – at the memory of the blood – but I swallowed it down, moving my hand so I could touch the second bullet wound on my chest, completely closed up like the first one.

"Why?" I asked as I removed my hand from my shirt, my voice a whisper. I looked up at Ellis and Moira, who stood in front of me, watching me with sympathetic eyes. "Five years. Why did it take so long to bring me back?"

Moira sighed. "Over the past five years, Ellis and I struggled to find the right substances and amount of mechanical therapy that could bring your heart back to life, get your organs functioning again, and help your body recover from the injuries that killed it. When we found you, it was, as I said, shortly after you 'died' - when Jericho had shot you and left. Pallor mortis and algor mortis had already kicked in, but we managed to get your body hooked up to at least some machines before rigor mortis could begin."

I swallowed hard. I wasn't a scientist. I didn't understand all of the chemical processes that occurred after death. Still, I was curious. "How did you bring me back to life?" I asked.

"The machines I mentioned before," Moira said. "As well as various nutrients. It helped reverse the effects of death that had already begun to occur within your body, until you were no longer dead, but rather in a coma." She flushed. "It's a complicated process. I don't want to confuse you anymore than you already are." She met my eyes again. "Anyway, you've spent the last five years alternating between comas and death, as we tried to figure a way to get your body to remember how to work on its own again, without the use of machines or nutrients. When we did…well, it was a few hours ago, when you woke up in the lab. That was when we first tried to bring back your conscious and get your body to work by itself for the first time in five years. I think I can speak for Ellis, too, when I say we're relieved that all of our hard work seems to have paid off so far."

I raised my hand and looked at it, amazed that all of this was even possible. Everything had gone black after Jericho had shot me, but a few hours ago I had opened my eyes again half a decade later with barely any sense toward the amount of time that had passed. It was as if I had simply gone to sleep at night and woken up in the morning.

I put my hand back down and looked around. We were still in that vault, located beneath the city grounds of Slateport. The whiteness of the hall all around me contradicted the mood outside – the post-apocalyptic hell that made my heart clench and ache. I had spent the last few hours since my awakening just trying to cope with the realization of how long I'd been dead. Ellis and Moira had confronted me after giving me the space they thought I needed, because I knew that I had to deal with what was in front of me, instead of huddling up in the corner and begging Arceus to help wake me from this nightmare.

"Five years," I said again. "What's happened since then? Since Kruismara and the fusions attacked?"

"All of Hoenn has been destroyed," Moira said, the reminder hitting me like another bullet. "So have Johto, Kanto, and Sinnoh. Most of Orre, Fiore, and Almia have been destroyed, too, while regions like Unova have closed off their borders, protecting the citizens and pokemon inside and preventing any fusions from coming in - as well as anyone carrying the Chimera Virus that could pass it on and cause an outbreak. It's a good tactic for maintaining order, but, unfortunately, it also means none of the inhabitants of the region can leave the region at all, nor can anyone get in."

I shivered at the thought, but I pushed it aside and looked around again. "This is a vault, right? To protect you from anything outside?"

Moira nodded. "Vaults like this have been built throughout the regions. They serve as protection for survivors who have nowhere else to go. They're known as 'survivor sanctuaries', and each city usually has a few communities of these hidden beneath their grounds, guarded by armed military soldiers and pokemon."

"Are the military fighting the fusions?"

"Yeah. All over the regions, the military are trying their best to stop the fusions. But…" Moira turned her eyes away. "There's too many. With how easy a fusion can infect a mortal with the Chimera Virus, the fusion fleets are growing by the minute. The military are putting up a good fight at trying to keep them at bay, but the battle's getting harder each day."

"What about the cure for the Virus?"

"Batches of the cure have been duplicated since the fusion attacks, recovered from some of Verdana's labs that existed here on the surface. The cure helped in fighting the fusions and saving the infected during the beginning, but the fusions have become so abundant the cure doesn't offer much when it comes to the actual war. It still helps in reversing the effects of a fusion transformation, but if the transformation is too far in, it doesn't do anything anymore. Scientists believe that the Virus has started to grow an immunity to the cure."

My eyes widened. "W-what?"

Moira shook her head. "Many scientists out there are racing against the clock to study the Virus, figure out its contents, and try to create something else that could fight it. But, all efforts have turned up fruitless." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a vial. A green-colored liquid filled the inside, and a memory flashed through my head at what it was. The cure for the Virus. "Despite everything, the cure is still being duplicated as many times as possible," Moira said. "Many see it as a sort of bargaining tool, because it can still save a mortal's life if it's injected soon enough after they're bitten. Many companies and traders out there find business in selling this stuff to the military and survivor sanctuaries, as well as using it for a type of currency all on its own."

I looked at the floor. Images of Jericho filled my head, as fresh as if they were made yesterday.

"You said you both found me shortly after Jericho had killed me," I said. "And you said you knew where to find me because you knew that Verdana was only the beginning and that Jericho would come after me. What did you mean? How did you know that Jericho would come after me?"

Moira shifted. "I guess I should introduce myself properly now. My full name is Moira Collins. I'm a scientist like Ellis, and we've both been colleagues for a very long time. However, I wasn't involved in the Chimera Project like Ellis had been, but I still kept in contact with Ellis as a friend. The first time I learned of the Chimera Project was when Ellis had told me about it – _everything_ about it – shortly after he had escaped Enfer City during Kruismara's attack down there. He told me about you – about how he suspected that you and your friends would confront Verdana. When Enfer City exploded and Verdana was confirmed dead, I was fully convinced. It was then when we both learned that you were still alive, and though I had thought that it was all over, Ellis told me that he had learned that Jericho Karvás was still around and involved with the Chimera Project."

Ellis raised his finger at that. "Jericho was a scientist, like me! Very close to Verdana, and very interested in the Virus and what it could do. When I still worked on the project, Verdana had revealed that she had chosen Jericho to be her protégé. If anything happened to her, Jericho would take over her experiments, take control of Kruismara, and guide him and the fusions in their attack on all humans and pokemon!"

"When Enfer City had been completed and Verdana prepared to use it as the training ground for the fusions and the Virus," said Moira, "she assigned Jericho to stay on the surface with the other scientists involved on the Chimera Project, to help guide Kruismara and the fusions when it was time for their surface attack. But, you killed Verdana before she could leave Enfer, and it was believed that when Enfer detonated, Kruismara and the fusions had been destroyed in the blast."

"Jericho was mad," Ellis said, repeating what I had been told earlier. "Very mad. With Kruismara and Verdana dead, he lost everything he had believed in and worked so hard for."

Moira nodded. "He used his detective persona to justify researching every Enfer City survivor, to try to see if he could find the one that killed Verdana. He tried his best to isolate each survivor to an environment where no one could see or hear them. When he found out that you were the one who killed Verdana, he shot you then and there, using that secluded office he led you to as a way of making sure no one found you before he was long gone." She frowned. "We had begun to follow Jericho once Ellis found out where he was, what he was doing, and how he was still dedicated to the Chimera Project."

I paused. "Why didn't you report him to the police?"

"We had no proof," Moira said. "Even though the police had just begun to discover the existence of the Chimera Project, there was no names listed in any project-related archives that could connect Jericho or any other scientists to the project. Ellis and I were on our own there, so when we saw Jericho leave for LaRousse, we quickly realized that he was heading for you, having waited for the right time to where he could get you alone, in case you were the one who killed Verdana.

"We followed him to LaRousse. Around the time we realized where he had taken you, he had already shot you, and the fusions and Kruismara had risen off the shores of Lilycove. When we got to that office building, he was already gone, and you were on the floor, dead. We picked you up, used any machines we had to slow some of the effects of death, and rushed you back to one of the labs here in Slateport, where we had access to more machines and nutrients that could help save you. As time passed and the fusions continued to attack the regions and spread the Virus, we moved our lab to one of the vaults here that could help protect us from the fusions, so we could keep working on bringing you back to life."

I exhaled. Slowly. "Where's Jericho now?"

"Jericho and the rest of the scientists of the Chimera Project now make up the Arbiter Corporation."

I blinked. "The Arbiter Corporation?"

Moira nodded. "Arbiter Corp, for short. It's the alias Jericho created for the teams that worked on the Chimera Project. It's a type of façade, because they have fooled the military and governmental officials in believing that they're just another business struggling to work in this world. In secret, though, they're controlling Kruismara as he attacks the regions and spreads the Virus. They have headquarters hidden all over the regions, with Jericho taking Verdana's place as leader of the entire group. He's still determined to carry out Verdana's dream of an empire controlled by fear, and he won't stop until it's accomplished."

My heart hammered against my chest. I shook and said, "Does Jericho know I'm alive?"

"No. No one does. For the past five years, we've hidden you from detection by the Arbiter Corp and anyone else, to make sure no one could try to stop us from bringing you back to life. When Jericho killed you, your body was never found, so the police considered you missing. Even up to now, you're still considered missing, but many have grown to believe you're dead. That includes Jericho."

I pulled back. Memories of Drew flashed through my head. Before I had left to meet with Jericho on the day I died, I had been in Drew's arms, on our bed, exhausted from a lovemaking session and just wishing I didn't have to leave – that I could just be in his arms and never move, feeling no fear for the future, because I knew I wasn't alone. And-

"_Be back soon," Drew had whispered._

"_I will," I said._

"_You promise?"_

_I smiled again._

"_I promise."_

And I had broken my promise.

"Where is everyone?" I asked. My eyes grew wet, and fear developed in my stomach – that cold, lance-like feeling of fear. "Drew, Lionel, Soledad, my parents and my brother…where are they? Are they still…?" I paused. "Are they still alive?"

Moira swallowed hard. She read my eyes and mirrored the emotions on her face, as if she understood why I shook now, when I had appeared to take most of the other information rather well.

Ellis stepped forward, sheepish. "Not sure," he said. "Only focused on you. Never had time to look for your friends." He met my eyes and grinned. "But hey, no frownies, friend! I have a way of finding out!"

* * *

Ellis led Moira and I to a door toward the back of the vault. The room inside was pitch black, but I could hear the faint whirring of more machines. Ellis felt around the nearby wall for a light switch. When he turned on the overhead lights, dozens of computer monitors appeared before me, bunched together on cheap, wooden desks. The actual computers were below the desks, dormant, their chords - miraculously - organized neatly into their own electrical sockets along the other walls.

I opened my mouth to say something, but Ellis moved forward before I could. He walked over to the computers, looked at each one with his chin cupped and eyebrow arched, and grinned when he pulled out a specific monitor from the group. He reached down and turned its computer on, its whirring sound growing louder as the machine came to life. He motioned me over.

"This machine has programs on it," Ellis said as I came up to his side. "Certain programs that give me access to the military's archives. Through those, I can tell where your friends are!"

My heart skipped a beat, and I immediately turned my eyes to the monitor screen.

Ellis grabbed the computer's mouse and clicked on a program. A window came up – a dark green window, with the symbol for the military on the front and a simple search box below it. Ellis grabbed a seat across from us, moved it in front of the computer, and sat down. Then, he cracked his fingers and readied them on the computer's keyboard.

"So," he said with a childish grin, "who do I search for first?"

"Family," I said, almost instantly. "Try Norman Maple and Caroline Maple."

He nodded and typed the names into the box. He clicked the "search" button. Multiple entries came up – I knew my parents couldn't be the only "Norman Maple" and "Caroline Maple" in the world – but Ellis picked out the files of my parents from the rest through my dad's connection with the Petalburg City gym.

Pictures of my parents came up. They looked older than what I had remembered. But I then remembered that it had been five years. I glanced at the mirroring screen of the dormant monitor next to us. My face also looked more built with age. I had been twenty-six when I died. Now I would nearly be thirty-two.

I pushed the thought away and looked back at my parents. Beside their photos were recorded information about them, including their date of births and where they lived before the fusion attack.

"Hmm," Ellis said, reading a little further. "According to this…" He smiled. "Your parents are alive!"

I breathed out a sigh of relief.

"They're located in a community of survivor sanctuaries in Johto," Ellis added. "They seem pretty okay to me."

"Good," I said.

I scanned my eyes over the page of information. When I crossed the section that talked about children, I saw my name and Max's name. Beside my name was the word "Missing" in bold font. I frowned at the thought, but then looked over to my brother.

"Check out Max's page," I said.

Ellis nodded and clicked it.

Max's information and photo came up. My eyes softened. He looked so handsome, his short, teal-colored hair neat against his forehead and neck, and his glasses magnifying the brown in his eyes. He had always been about three years younger than me, so he would be twenty-eight to twenty-nine now. He looked younger than that, well dressed, a calm frown on his face, as if this photo had been made specifically for the military.

"According to this," Ellis said, bringing me back to reality, "Max is alive, too." He leaned forward, almost suddenly, his eyes on the screen. "Wait, what's this? Ooh, interesting!"

I paused. "What?"

"Your brother's a member of the Resistance."

I blinked. "The Resistance? What's that?"

Moira walked up to my side, her arms crossed. "The Resistance is a specific group of military soldiers that was created a few months after the fusions first attacked the surface. They're dedicated to finding the source of the fusion attack. Since the Chimera Virus is already known to be manmade, many believe that the fusions and Kruismara are being led on by something or someone."

I met her eyes. "But I thought you said that the military didn't know about Jericho or the Arbiter Corp."

"They don't, because no one has any proof that links Jericho, or any other members of Arbiter Corp, to Verdana. Still, while the majority of the military fights the fusions fleets, they need to have people looking for inside info – anything about the Chimera Project still unknown that could be used toward discovering the fusions' weaknesses and secrets. That's what the Resistance is for."

I looked back at the computer screen. My brother had always been a fighter when he needed to be, brave and strong for his friends and loved ones. But, I had never imagined him being part of the military. A sense of pride filled me at how Max was doing something like this, being as brave and strong as he had been before.

"Now who do I search for?" Ellis asked.

"Try Lionel Zaranous," I said, recalling the man I had known throughout the Enfer City incident.

Ellis entered the name. Lionel's file came up seconds afterward. Even after five years, he still looked like a goofy college kid, his blond hair scruffy. His azure eyes were serious, though, his face more smooth than before.

"Lionel's alive," Ellis said. "And he's part of the Resistance, too!"

"Wow," I said with a small smile.

Another name came to my head. I sighed, an anxious feeling growing in the pit of my stomach. I pushed it aside and gathered any courage I had, meeting Ellis' gaze.

"Try Drew Trandafir," I said. "Andrew Trandafir."

Ellis slowly nodded and typed in the name.

I closed my eyes and braced myself.

"Drew is…" Ellis paused. "Alive!"

I opened my eyes and looked at the computer screen.

Emerald-colored eyes stared back at me, narrowed, and deep; dragon-like eyes that, even with the passing of five years, hadn't changed. Drew should have been pushing thirty-two like me. He was still handsome. His hair was still green, reaching past his shoulders, his bangs hanging in front of his eyes, creating a curtain-like formation on one side that obscured away his face when he looked at me from the side. A tuft of green hair protruded from the bottom of his lip and ended at his chin – the same goatee/soul patch that he had had before. It was all the same.

And he was alive.

Slowly, I reached forward. My finger brushed across his photo, touching his lips. His face. Him. Drew Trandafir. My coordinating rival, my best friend, and the very man I had fallen in love with.

"He's part of the Resistance, too," Ellis said, not minding how I touched the computer screen.

I pulled my hand away, my eyes widened. "Are you serious?"

"Yup!" Ellis grinned. "Cool beans!"

I wondered what Drew had done over the past five years. How did he react when I never showed up at our house the day I'd been killed, or when the police had listed me as missing? How had he coped with it for the past five years? Was my absence part of his influence to join the military and the Resistance?

How had everyone else reacted to my fate?

Regret filled me. I couldn't imagine the pain Drew, or any of them, had went through over the past five years. The pain I felt in my own chest probably only matched a fraction of it.

I pushed the thoughts aside and moved on.

"Try Soledad Davidson," I said.

Ellis typed in the name. Seconds later Soledad's photo came up.

I arched my brow.

She didn't look any different than when I had seen her during the Enfer City incident. There was nothing different about her – not even in the face. Was this photo recent?

Ellis read her information. His shoulders dropped.

"Uh oh…" he said.

"What?" I asked.

Ellis swallowed hard and turned the monitor to me. I read the information, including her maiden name, her date of birth, her hometown, and other basic info. I stopped when I crossed her status:

**DECEASED**

I froze.

"W-what…" I whispered. My heart fell, digging out a hollow pit through my chest. "Soledad…she's dead?"

Ellis bit his lip and nodded. "According to this, she was part of the Resistance, too. But four years ago, there was a fusion ambush on one of the Resistance bases, and she was killed in the onslaught." He looked at me, his eyes deep. "I…I'm so sorry, May."

I shook. My hands clenched at my sides. I grit my teeth as I looked back at the computer screen. Beneath Soledad's "status" section was the "family" section. Harley Davidson was listed under "husband", but beside his name was that very same word.

Deceased.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. Memories of Harley and Soledad came to my head – my other coordinating rivals that had also been a lot more.

Harley had sacrificed himself down in Enfer City to save Drew, Soledad, Lionel, and I, already condemned to death through the Chimera Virus as it ran through his veins and began to change him. It was bad enough to lose the man that had been like another father to me, but to lose the woman that had raised Drew as if he had been her own son – a trustworthy leader to us all?

"Does she have a child?" I asked. "She was pregnant before I was killed. Does it say that she has a son or daughter?"

"If she did," Ellis said, "it's not saying anything here."

I turned and leaned back against the desk, my hand on my face. Drew had lost me, and then he had lost Soledad. The more I thought about it – what he could be feeling right now – the more I just wanted to see him, to let him know I was still here.

I wanted to let him know that he wasn't alone.

"May?"

Slowly, I looked up.

Moira approached me, her eyes soft.

"May," she said. "Have you wondered why Ellis and I worked for the past five years to bring you back to life? What happened down in Enfer affected everyone." She sighed. "You saved so many lives by stopping Verdana. You were brave. But the idea of all that being in vain because of Jericho and the Arbiter Corp, or how the Chimera Virus and the fusions have turned this world into a living hell…Ellis and I had to do something. We weren't going to just hide and let Jericho get away with this."

I shook, but not just with fear.

"But so far," Moira said, "Jericho has been getting away with it. We're losing the battle, May, and it isn't right. You fought these fusions head on, you stopped Verdana no matter what she threw at you, and you escaped Kruismara when others hadn't. If there's anyone that can stop Jericho, it's you."

My fingers clenched. My teeth gritted behind my lips. Images of Jericho flashed through my head. More anger filled me.

"May," Moira said, "we brought you back to life, because this world needs you right now. We want you to join the Resistance."

I met her eyes at that.

And I nodded.

* * *

"The only pokeball that was in your pocket when we found your body," Moira said as she led me back down the vault's hall, Ellis not far behind, "was your blaziken's. For the past five years we've kept her up to date on the process of bringing you back to life. She's in her pokeball right now, waiting to see you, and she's willing to help you in any direction you choose to go."

I breathed a sigh of relief. I assumed Drew had my other pokemon. The idea of having Blaziken by my side filled me with a sense of security. "How do I contact the Resistance?" I asked.

"They have bases all over the regions," Moira said. "One of their bases here is located in Lilycove. But…" She shook her head. "There are fusions everywhere outside. We have means of safe transportation for you, but it won't be enough for an entire journey to Lilycove. You're going to need a bodyguard – someone that can help protect you until you reach Lilycove."

I hummed. "Any ideas?"

Moira nodded. "Three years ago, an assassin by the name of Artemis showed up. Assassins, bounty hunters, and mercenaries are common in this chaotic world now, but she easily became one of the most renowned through her liability. She has never failed an assignment, as long as she's given the right amount of money to justify the job. We believe that she'll provide protection for you. We have a briefcase of money that should meet her requirements."

Assassins as allies? I felt uneasy toward the idea, but I didn't have any other options. "Alright, but how can I contact _her_, then?"

"It's rumored that, every now and then, she crosses over Dewford Town, as if there's something over there that's important to her. If you can make your way down there, you might be able to confront her."

I nodded.

Moira and Ellis continued to lead me down the hall. We stopped in front of a set of large double doors. Ellis opened them, revealing a factory-like room. It reminded me of a sort of hangar, only smaller. Toward the center of the room was what looked like a military truck, its windows secured by metal screens, with armored plating covering every inch of its surface. I assumed this to be my "safe transportation" to Dewford and Lilycove.

Moira turned to me.

"The Resistance have been investigating the fusions for most of the past five years," she said. "They're pretty much a hidden organization. But, each year, Ellis and I have worried that the Arbiter Corp would discover their existence and take them out. Nothing has happened yet, but…" Moira met my eyes. "The Resistance has been losing their own motivation in this war. Many of their members have lost loved ones and the lives they held before this all happened. If you can join them and help them find the members of Arbiter Corp - and find out how they're controlling Kruismara and the fusions – it might be all we need to finally have a fighting chance against this nightmare."

Ellis reached into his pocket and pulled out a pokeball.

Blaziken's pokeball.

He handed it to me. Then, he reached back into his pocket and took out something else, holding it tightly in his hand.

Gently, he opened the fingers of my other hand and dropped the small object in my palm. It shined in the overhead lights.

My wedding ring. The ring Drew had given me.

"If you join the Resistance," Moira said, her voice now soft, "then you can promise that we can't allow any of this to be in vain."

Slowly, I closed my fingers around my wedding ring.

I had broken my promise to Drew – the promise I had made the day I died.

But, I wasn't going to break any others.


	5. Let It Happen

**-Artemis-**

The forest that surrounded Littleroot leaned over the edge of death just as much as the forest outside of Rustboro. To any regular scavenger searching the land for food or security, nothing would have looked unique amidst a jungle of bent trees and cracked leaves. Unless they stumbled onto the ruins of a city or town, they would probably feel like they'd been running around in circles – and be dead before they even realized they hadn't.

A clinging feeling of being watched was inevitable in a dark forest, which was why fusions thrived in these types of environments. A pitch-black alleyway in the middle of the night? Scary enough, but combine that standard with a place where no on could hear you scream or come to you, and you radiated with the very emotion fusions hunted by. Fear. A natural aspect to anything that moved. Since half of the fusions out there had once been human, they probably retained enough gut feelings to know how to take advantage of a man's fight-or-flight response - and to know how places like dark forests practically drew maps listing where all the good feeding spots were.

The forest around Littleroot was a perfect example of this.

Through the thermal vision of my visor, I could see the shapes of fusions as they sneaked around in the darkness of Littleroot's forest, waiting for those very scavengers to come waltzing on by. None of them turned their heads when my charizard silently flew over them with me on his back. It was as if I was invisible, and I pretty much was. I had trained myself over the past three years to suppress my fear, converting all anxiousness to adrenaline, which I then used to kill any fusions that did detect me. If you took away the ability to sense fear, a fusion became just like any other monster, only able to find you through scent, sight, or hearing, and that could always make the game a little more fair.

Unfortunately, that ability couldn't be taken away. The fusions had been built around that concept – hunting prey by sensing their fear – so anyone trying to survive had no choice but to adjust to it. It failed most of the time, which was why the deaths accumulated since this nightmare began hadn't found any trouble in rivaling the number of survivors.

I had been one of the "adjusted" that survived.

I brought up my gauntleted hand. The maroon-colored armor blended in with the black leather, covering the hand completely. The entire _Artemis _suit had been built for that, covering everything, so it could hide my identity from the clients and the targets - and erase the life I had had before.

* * *

"Lower."

My charizard acknowledged me with a grunt.

Through the shape of the trees below, I could tell where the vault was. With Charizard hovering over the tips of the trees, I grabbed the briefcase I had retrieved from Warren and jumped down from his back. I landed silently on the ground, where I used my thermal vision to make sure that there weren't any fusions nearby. I returned Charizard to his pokeball, and I brushed away the groups of leaves and twigs that covered the ground before me.

A metal door came into view once I removed a majority of its disguise. Small and circular, like a manhole cover, I opened it and dropped inside, the darkness within enveloping me.

* * *

The tunnel leading down from the entrance was cold and damp, as this vault usually was. A warm light illuminated the far end, hinting at a bigger room beyond. I could hear the clings and clanks of metallic objects echo from down the hall. Then a large crash, followed by a voice hissing out a few colorful metaphors because – I presumed – one of those metallic objects had landed on a foot.

When I reached the room, I saw that familiar long wooden table covered with metal parts. Many of the parts had been put together to form various types of guns, knives, and bombs, but even more lay strewn across the table, filling every available space. Along the pipe-covered walls, finished guns had been hung for display, their clean surfaces reflecting the orange glow of the gaslight lamps placed on the multiple nightstands around the room. Overall, the room – the entire small vault in general – seemed like something out of a steampunk novel.

The source of the voice from before was a tall, thin man no older than twenty-five. His strawberry blonde hair curled over his forehead, somewhat hanging over his large glasses that magnified the green in his eyes. Dressed in belted clothes that made him look like a nineteenth-century engineer ahead of his time, he matched with the theme of the room.

He jumped in place, holding his foot, while a thick piece of metal rolled off into a dark corner – the culprit making its escape. He hissed more curses when his back bumped into the wall. He didn't seem to notice me, but I wasn't surprised. He never did.

With a shake of my head, I banged my fist against the metallic wall.

The sound reverberated throughout the whole room, its echo traveling down the pipes. Like a roar, it made the man stumble over. He quickly grabbed a nightstand to steady himself, where he looked over his shoulder and finally realized I was there.

"Artemis?" he said, as he stood back up and readjusted his skewed glasses. He blinked, innocent, nowhere near as "intimidated" as people usually were when my name was uttered. "What are you doing here?"

I grabbed the rifle from my back – or, at least what was left of it – and dropped it on his table.

He cringed as the metal pieces bounced up from the weight. Then, he walked over and grabbed the rifle. His posture slumped as he trailed his eyes over the jagged line where that scizor had severed the rifle in two. He looked at me.

"Arceus," he said, frowning, "isn't this the third rifle I've given you in the past two months? You've been going through them like water lately! Do you think this stuff grows on trees? My guns are extraordinary, and I definitely don't like seeing them going through this torture! For an assassin, you sure don't take great care of your moneymakers! And don't get me started on-"

Ignoring his rant, I opened up the briefcase I had taken with me, grabbed a few stacks of the money inside, and dropped them on his table like I had done with the rifle.

His eyes strayed to the money, then back to me, his voice fading off, until he simply closed his mouth. He grabbed one of the stacks and counted the amount of thousand-dollar bills.

He sighed.

"You know," he said, "I wouldn't do this for anyone else. I'd tell them to get out for breaking my inventions, but I suppose with all that support you gave me for my hobby those long years ago…I guess I can be a little biased. Not to mention you're the only sense of business I got, and even an inventor needs to eat." He held up the rifle. "This is too far gone to be fixed. I'll make you a new one, from scratch. Same features, right? Wait, don't bother answering. After the past three years, I know what you want."

I smiled behind my helmet.

Ardan "Ratchet" O'Hall. A friend I had met in my twenties, back when fusions didn't exist and the world was still peaceful. He had just been a kid then, but he was definitely smart for his age. A lover for constructing objects, he had called himself an inventor. Even if the only things he had been able to build at the time were tiny figures made out of metal, he took pride in his creations. When the fusions attacked five years ago, he had switched the focus of his expertise to weaponry, which had proved useful to his own protection, as well as to mine.

After all, he had been the one who had built the _Artemis _suit.

Ratchet hummed to himself as he studied my broken rifle, probably determining where to strengthen the metal bonds – in order to lower the chance of him having to build a fifth one.

"Two hours," he said. "Give or take. Think you can wait that long?"

He looked at me, his brow arched. There was a frown on his face – as if he was unimpressed toward something – but I figured it to be the lingering grief for his broken invention. I brushed him off with a wave of my hand.

Ratchet ran his gaze over my armor. His frown tightened.

But, he said nothing else. He turned back around to face his table, and I left the room for a much-needed walk.

* * *

I returned two hours later, having traversed the small vault a few times over. Ratchet was the only one who lived here when his pokemon were excluded. I wasn't sure where the vault had come from; it had been here even before the fusions had attacked. But I didn't find any satisfaction in questioning a liable source of security for a good friend.

As I approached Ratchet's table, he turned to face me, a brand new rifle in his hands – a complete copy of the one I had had before. I put my briefcase down and took the rifle, testing its aiming capabilities and how its grips fit into my hands. Perfect, as always.

Ratchet's eyes strayed back to my armor. Then, he looked at the briefcase I had set down. A frown crossed his face.

"You taking that to Malcolm?" he asked.

I paused, but only for a second. I hung the new rifle across my back and nodded at him.

"Have you ever…" Ratchet trailed off, as if he debated with himself on what he wanted to say. He shook his head. "Have you ever considered putting away that suit and just staying with Malcolm?"

At that, I paused for more than a simple second.

I looked at him.

"Why do you ask?" I said, my voice clear, despite the thick metal of my helmet.

Ratchet managed to meet my eyes through my one-way visor. "I'm one of the few people who know why you're an assassin. I'm one of the few people who know why you're always taking the money you get from assignments to Dewford Town. I'm one of the few people who know who you are behind that armor."

"You built the suit," I said.

"I did, but the more I think about what you're doing out there while you're in it, the more I wish I'd never played a part in it."

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I'm saying," Ratchet said, "that I've known you for a long time – before you became Artemis. Every time you come back here, you have more blood on your hands, even with how you try to wash it off and pretend like it's nothing. When you told me to build the _Artemis_ suit, I went along with it because I thought it might help you. But, now I see that it was just a big mistake. I'm starting to worry about you. With each kill, you're forgetting who you are."

"I haven't forgotten," I said, firmly.

"Then why are you still Artemis? Why won't you let it go and be with Malcolm?"

I looked away. "I'm _this_ so I can protect Malcolm."

"Protect Malcolm?" Ratchet stood, fists clenched. "You call this protecting Malcolm? You're killing people to get money, just so you can leave it on his doorstep and nothing more! He remembers who you are, but that's a miracle considering how he never sees you!"

I said nothing.

Ratchet snorted. "Like I said, I'm one of the few people who know who you are behind that armor, but I'm the only person who knows the _real_ reason why you're Artemis."

I looked at him.

"Revenge," Ratchet said. "You think working your way into the good books of big businesses and important people by taking out their enemies will eventually lead you to the Arbiter Corporation. And for what? Revenge."

"The Arbiter Corporation are the ones who are keeping the fusions alive," I said. "Why is going after them a bad thing?"

"You're killing people just because someone tells you to!" Ratchet retorted. "Even if the person is innocent! Your morals are slipping away before your eyes, and you don't care anymore! I know why you want revenge. It's not for the nightmare these fusions have caused. No. You want revenge because of what the Chimera Virus took away from you five years ago!"

I paused again. My heart ached within my chest. I grabbed the handgun from my side and aimed it at Ratchet.

"Don't you dare-" I hissed.

Ratchet cut me off with a shake of his head, unfazed by the gun pointed at his chest. "You're Artemis, because you think it's the only way you can ease the pain. Everything is justified, as long as you take out the Arbiter Corporation in the end. Even if you lose yourself, the death of those who created the Chimera Virus will make everything better. Revenge. Not just for the sake of stopping the fusions, but for the sake of making that one bad memory fade away."

I exhaled. Slowly.

"But masquerading as some dark knight," Ratchet said, "isn't going to revenge anything. Becoming the very thing you hate isn't going to bring _him_ back."

I lowered my gun, shaking.

Ratchet met my eyes again. "It's time you take Malcolm and move on. That's what you want, but you're convinced that that's not enough."

"How do you know that that's what I want?"

Ratchet sighed. "Because after the past twelve years, I know what you need."

* * *

With my new rifle hooked across my back, I left Ratchet after his final words with nothing more but a small nod of my head, ignoring how his disgusted eyes followed me out the door. I exited the vault, released my charizard, and climbed onto his back. He seemed to sense my discomfort, as he turned his head to look at me, otherwise serious eyes softening slightly.

_Becoming the very thing you hate isn't going to bring _him_ back._

"Head toward Dewford," I said.

As Charizard took off, another sharp pain jolted through my heart.

But I ignored it, just as I had done since I first put on this suit.


	6. Chasing Phantoms

**-May-**

Five years ago, the white walls of an underground shelter would have seemed terribly flat next to the greens and blues of nature. Its eerie silence would be an unfamiliar landscape when you were used to the laughter of happy townspeople and pokemon. The sight of the sun as it would sail its way across a calm sky would be a beacon in a dark sea, as natural as breathing air, providing light and warmth that a vault could only try to match with dusty old blankets and a generator loud enough to keep you up at night.

But, this wasn't five years ago.

Now, a vault was paradise when compared to the outside world. Its white walls offered the confidence taken away from the death and decay that plagued the regions' forests. Its eerie silence ensured that there weren't any fusions around, growling with hunger. The loud rumble of the generator at night might as well have been a lullaby, because that meant it still worked and would provide electricity the next day; enough motivation to forget how you missed the warmth of the sun and curl up in one of those dusty old blankets in preparation of tomorrow.

As I drove down the main route that led out of Slateport, I wanted nothing but to be back in that vault with Ellis and Moira. The only method of communication I still had with them was the radio installed into the truck's dashboard, which would stay silent until Ellis and Moira needed to tell me something, or until I needed their help. Or reassurances. The more I looked at ruins, the more I felt like I had returned to the streets of Enfer City, surrounded by the destruction the Chimera Virus had caused. Though Katherine Verdana was dead, her legacy lived through the nightmare all around me.

Through the Arbiter Corporation.

Through Jericho.

I looked over. In the passenger seat of the military truck, my blaziken kept a firm eye on the surroundings outside, peering through the gated windows. The past five years had aged her face a little and made her body more lean. When I had released her and confirmed that I was alive, her eyes had brightened, as if my resurrection had been the first piece of good news the world had seen in that span of time. But, now that we were on the road toward Dewford, she guarded me like a warrior, her gaze as dark as before. We both knew that there was no time for celebration or laughter, as the reason for our smiles could be taken away if we weren't careful and alert.

At that thought, I tightened my grip on the steering wheel. My wedding ring pushed into the skin of my finger. I had put it back on after we had left the vault, filling that empty void that came with Drew's absence; the acknowledgement that, though I knew that he was still alive, I had no way of knowing for sure that he was okay. Was he hurt? Was he depressed? How had the last five years affected him?

Had he moved on? Had he found love in someone else since I died?

My heart ached at the idea, but I knew that if he had moved on, it shouldn't stop me from caring about him – and from joining the Resistance to ensure a fate like mine couldn't happen to him, or anyone else I cared about.

I felt guilty enough that Soledad was gone.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, I was finally out of Slateport. I was surprised that Blaziken hadn't seen anything on our way to the city's southern gate. With the desertedness of the ruins, though, it wouldn't shock me if the fusions had moved on, thinking they had picked the place clean. The thought made me want to turn the truck around and drive to Lilycove without Artemis' help, but I knew that it was unlikely that every other city and forest in Hoenn would be just as empty as Slateport.

When I had still been in my early twenties, construction had finished on a bridge that connected Dewford Island to the Hoenn mainland, its route starting at the southern gate of Slateport. It provided easy transportation for trainers who didn't have enough money for a boat ticket, water pokemon to surf on, or any other method to reach Dewford Town. It usually took an hour to drive across, depending on the traffic, and people traveling on the bridge always had a good view of the sea during the trip.

With the bridge just as dead as Slateport, it would probably only take another half hour before I reached Dewford Town. Every now and then, I passed by an overturned car, its contents poured out across the road. There were no bodies, though, despite the presence of blood smeared across the concrete guards that traced the bridge's edge. I tried to keep my eyes away from the sight, knowing that the nausea in my stomach meant my brain had already seen more than it could handle.

The sea below was dark, like ink. It matched with the sky, obscured away by a mist that clung to the bridge like a lost soul. The headlights of the truck managed to clear the way for me, but without them I doubted I would've been able to see my hand in front of my face. Waves brushed up against the bridge's supports. Their shuffling, like whispering, was eerie, as if nothing existed in their midst. Were there any fusions in the water? If there were, I couldn't see them. I couldn't even see any mortal pokemon. I couldn't see anything.

I just kept driving.

Dewford Island came into view ten minutes later, a small chunk of land that was still large enough to support a town and its own gym. The town itself was also deserted, practically hidden away by the very same mist that rolled in from the ocean. But, on the other side of it, I could see lights, as if another town was just up ahead.

A survivor sanctuary? A community?

Since I wasn't sure that the survivor sanctuary was the reason why Artemis sometimes crossed over Dewford Island, I returned Blaziken to her pokeball until I needed her and parked my truck close to the ruins of town, so I could get out and survey the place myself. Like Slateport, there were no fusions in sight. Was the whole island fusion-free? If so, that would explain why the survivor sanctuary felt secured enough to not worry about hiding their lights. I couldn't find any signs of Artemis, but I also didn't know what she looked like. Neither had Ellis and Moira, so I couldn't call them for help.

I made my way toward the sanctuary. In the distance, I could see the shapes of patrolling guards and pokemon. The vaults themselves weren't completely installed into the ground. In fact, they all looked like average houses, resembling a neighborhood where only the front half of each building was visible on the surface. If Artemis really did cross over Dewford Island every now and then, then maybe one of the survivors in the sanctuary had seen her – and could give me a description to go by.

As I approached the gate that marked the entrance for the community, I paused when I saw a red sphere bounce out from behind the gate's wall and into the grass not far from me. Another form – a humanoid form – ran out from the gate seconds later, chasing after it. The closer he got, the more his shape defined itself against the bright background of the community.

He was a boy, no older than five. He wore a tee shirt that looked one size too big for him, with shorts and sneakers. Tousled hair fell into his face, its color a mixture of purple and red, like mulberry. His forest green eyes brightened as he finally reached his red ball, a small smile on his face.

That is, until he looked up and noticed me.

He blinked. Then, his eyes brightened again, his smile now a grin. He waved happily.

"Hi!" he called.

I swallowed. "Uh, hi."

He made his way over to me, his ball in his hands.

"What's your name?" he asked.

A sense of recognition filled me as I looked into his eyes, but I couldn't place the source. I'd never seen this boy before, so why did it feel like I had?

"May," I said. "I'm May."

"Hi, May!" the boy said, closing his eyes in delight. "I'm Malcolm!"

I chuckled. "Malcolm's a pretty cool name."

"Thanks! Everyone calls me Mal. You can, too, if you want!"

"Okay." I looked back at the community. "So, Mal, do you live over there?"

Malcolm followed my eyes. "Yeah. I'm not supposed to go past the gate, but my ball rolled this way. I couldn't lose this! It's one of my coolest toys!"

I smiled. "Is it?"

"Yeah, my mom got it for me! She's so cool! She's a superhero!" He frowned. "I just wish she was here so she could play with me…"

"Oh…" I paused. A superhero? His vivid imagination made me nostalgic for my own childhood. "Is your mom okay?" I shook my head and rephrased my thought. "I mean, where is she?"

"I don't know," Malcolm said. "She's always gone."

He met my eyes. I hoped something hadn't happened to his mother, but my worries were cast away when his smile returned, as if nothing was wrong.

"I haven't seen you before!" he said. "What are you doing out here?"

I shifted weight between my shoulders. "I'm looking for someone."

"Then you should talk to my aunt! She knows everyone here! She can help!"

I smiled again. "That'd be great. Thanks."

Malcolm nodded and stepped forward. "Follow me!"

* * *

Malcolm led me through the sanctuary's gate and into the neighborhood. Patrolling guards eyed us as we passed by. They said nothing; despite the bewildered looks they gave me. Malcolm's large grin was probably enough to assure I was a friend, even if no one in the community had seen me before.

We stopped in front of a specific house toward the far end of the community. It had one story, though its curved backside implied there was another level beneath the ground. Apart from that, the house followed the stereotypical grass-covered yard with the white picket fence, as if the state of the outside world didn't exist. But, when death, monsters, and post-apocalyptic aspects surrounded you, having any memorabilia from a more innocent time probably helped with the confidence factor.

I looked at Malcolm. His childish innocence was palpable, unaffected by the decay beyond the sanctuary's gates. The entire design of this neighborhood had definitely helped him.

"This is where my aunt lives," he said. "I live with her, since my mom's away."

I nodded and followed him toward the front door, where he pushed it open and showed me the inside.

The living room and kitchen was visible from the front door. A hallway led on from the kitchen, probably connected to more rooms and, I presumed, the stairs that led to the vault story of the house. The living room itself seemed average, with its couch, TV, and multiple action figures scattered across the carpeted floor. The kitchen was average, too, its counters made of granite, and an oak dinner table placed not far from the fridge.

A woman emerged from the hallway. Her graying hair was tied up into a bun, and an apron covered her front. Her eyes were bright blue – a sense of youth among her aged face. She seemed more like a grandmother than an aunt, but the lack of resemblance between her and Malcolm hinted that "aunt" was just a title, not a literal blood relation.

"Hi, Aunt Cary!" Malcolm said. He put his ball into a basket by the door and ran up to her, wrapping his arms around her waist, since that was only as far as he could reach.

"Hello, Malcolm," the woman said, a soft smile on her face. She looked up and noticed me. She raised her gray eyebrows. "Oh? Who's this?"

"May!" Malcolm said. "I met her outside of the gate!"

Cary looked down at Malcolm, frowning. "Outside of the gate? Mal, you know you're not supposed to go that far."

Malcolm pouted. "I'm sorry!"

Cary sighed, as if she couldn't stay mad with the boy. "It's alright. Go play in your room while I'll talk with your new friend. I have your favorite _Teenage Mutant Ninja Squirtles_ movie on."

"Alright!" Malcolm ran off down the hall.

Cary approached me.

"Sorry 'bout that," she said. "Mal's quite the social beautifly. If he hasn't seen you before, he'll be the first in line to learn everything about you." She met my eyes. "Now, I can tell you're not from around here. Any particular reason why you came?"

I nodded. "Malcolm said you knew everyone in town. I was wondering if you…" I paused. "If you knew the person I'm looking for. Well, at least what she looks like. I was told she passes through here every now and then."

"Really?" Cary thought for a moment. "This is a pretty close-knit neighborhood. If someone passes through here regularly, then I'll probably know them, too. Do you know her name?"

I lowered my voice. "Artemis."

Cary froze. She met my eyes again, her gaze filled with shock. "W-what?"

I faltered. Maybe asking the townspeople about how to reach an assassin was a bad idea. "I mean-"

"Why do you need to find her?"

I stopped and looked at Cary. Her eyes were now dark, serious, and I suddenly felt as if I had intruded onto private territory. "I have somewhere to be," I said, "and I need her help to get there."

Cary turned away. "Then…I do know Artemis."

I blinked. "You do? Can you tell me-"

My words were cut off by a knock on the door. A single knock.

I looked back at Cary, who had turned her darkened eyes to the door. Silently, she passed me and opened it, where a briefcase lay on the porch step. Nothing more. It was as if the person who had left it had disappeared into thin air.

Cary's eyes didn't change. No confusion. No shock. Was this something she expected? Who had left it? I kept these questions to myself as she grabbed the briefcase, walked back inside, and shut the door behind her. She took the small note that had been taped to the handle and read it. I looked at it from over her shoulder.

_For Malcolm._

Cary sighed.

"You said you needed to see Artemis," she said. "Well, here's your proof that she does pass through here."

My eyes widened. "_That's_ from Artemis? But, why? How does she know Mal-"

I was cut off again as Malcolm rushed in from the hallway. He looked at the briefcase, and then at the note Cary held. His eyes brightened.

"Mommy was here!" he said.

I paused. I looked at Cary.

"Mother?" I whispered. "Artemis is Malcolm's _mother_?"

Cary turned to me. Her serious expression didn't change, as if she could read all of the questions in my eyes, but didn't care about any of them.

"If you really need to see Artemis," she said, "then you have to go now. You won't see her again if she leaves the island before you can catch her. Follow the charizard."

I blinked. I shook away my confusion, nodding at her words. I turned toward the door-

"May?" Malcolm said, his head tilted to the side. "Where are you going?"

"She just has to go, honey," Cary said, her voice soft.

I smiled. "It was nice to meet you, Mal."

Malcolm frowned. "Oh…okay. It was nice to meet you, too."

I left.

* * *

_Follow the charizard._

I ran out of the gate into the community and looked up. As Cary had told me, Artemis was still on the island. I could see a charizard fly in the distance, heading toward the bridge. On top of it was a humanoid shape.

I ran after it.

When I was far away enough from the armed soldiers, I called out Artemis' name. She didn't seem to hear me, as her charizard kept flying forward. When I came across a large hill, her charizard dipped down, disappearing behind it.

I circled the hill. Rocks were scattered all over the ground on the other side, large enough to hide behind.

"Artemis?"

I called her name again as I looked around. I couldn't see any sign of her, not even in the sky.

"Art-"

I swallowed the rest of her name as a force pushed me down from the back. I turned around.

And I came face to face with the barrel of a rifle.

I froze. I looked at the person that held the gun.

It was a woman, though I couldn't tell her age. She was dressed in maroon-colored armor and black leather, which covered every inch of her body. Her helmet's visor seemed to be one-way, because despite that the only thing I saw on its surface was a reflection of myself, she had managed to aim her rifle directly at me. A cape swept over her thigh, attached to a waist belt that held a majority of pokeballs and knives. Overall, she looked like some science-fiction super soldier.

I closed my eyes and braced myself for the sound of gunfire. As an assassin, I wasn't surprised that Artemis had noticed me following her - and that she had snuck up on me without alerting me whatsoever.

But, the gunfire never came.

Slowly, I opened my eyes.

The rifle was still aimed at me. However, I could see Artemis' hands shake as she held it. I couldn't see her face, so I couldn't read her expression. But, just by the awkward movements that hadn't been there before…

Was she nervous about something? Scared?

Shocked?

"You're not going to shoot me?" I asked, not knowing if I should be relieved yet.

Slowly, Artemis lowered her rifle.

"How can you shoot a ghost?" she said.

As I arched a brow, she dropped the rifle on the ground. Then, gazing around one last time, she reached up to the back of her neck, unlatching something. She removed her helmet from her head, as well as the clip that had kept her hair bundled together while she wore it.

Greenish-blue eyes met mine.

Long, pink-red-colored hair fell down her back.

My jaw dropped.

"_Sol-Soledad_?"


	7. Shattered Creeds

**-Soledad-**

I offered May my hand to help her to her feet. Guilt hit me at the fact that I had knocked her down, which had been a side effect of my constant alertness and "finger on the trigger" ideology, but I was amazed as well. Seeing May's face – a face I hadn't seen in five years – made me wonder if she was just a hallucination, and whether my hand would just pass through hers when she reached up to take it.

May was just as hesitant as I was. She grabbed my hand, got to her feet, and looked at me as if I was something she had thought she'd never see again.

"Soledad," she said, her voice a whisper. She met my eyes. "It really is you."

I frowned. "I haven't gone by that name in a long time…"

She swallowed hard. "I thought you were dead."

"I'm pretty sure I can say the same about you."

May pulled back. Her eyes darkened. "I…" she said. She shook her head. "It's a long story."

A breeze passed over us. It bit at the skin of my face with its cold teeth. I felt naked, despite the fact that I only lacked my helmet. I brought it up, gazed at the one-way visor that mirrored the misty sky above, and I looked back at May.

"Got a more comfortable place to tell it?" I asked.

May nodded.

I grabbed my rifle from the ground, hooked it along my back, and followed May toward the ruins of Dewford Town.

* * *

"Finally, Ellis and Moira gave me this to get to Lilycove," May said as she made her way toward the front of the military truck she had led me to, showing it.

It had taken ten whole minutes to tell her story, condensing it into a version much less complex than what Ellis and Moira had probably given. I gazed around the inside of the military truck while she told it from start to finish. She explained how Ellis and Moira had brought her back to life after five years; how Jericho Karvás, the leader of the Arbiter Corporation, had been the one who had killed her, and, ultimately, caused her five-year disappearance; and how she had practically been thrown into a world so war torn it barely resembled anything related to the once-innocent past.

I looked back at her. I would've been lying if I said that her story hadn't amazed me. When you had spent so long living in a world where miracles were scarce, any sign of good news was a light at the end of that dark tunnel.

"Why do you need to reach Lilycove?" I asked.

"I want to join the Resistance."

I paused.

May turned to me.

"Speaking of which," she said. "I think it's your turn to explain some stuff now. Why did those archives say you were dead? Are you still in the Resistance? What about Drew? Does he know you're alive? Why are you…" She trailed off and shook her head. "Why are you an assassin? And what about Malcolm? Is he-?"

"My son?" I said, my voice quiet. I met her eyes. "Yeah, he is."

May shifted. "So that means that his father is-"

"Harley."

May fell back into the truck's driver seat. "At least I now know why he looked so familiar." She smiled weakly. "He has his father's face."

I sighed, put my helmet down on the floor next to me, and leaned back against the wall of the truck's closed bed.

"Those 'archives' said I was dead," I began, "because I supposedly did die in that ambush four years ago."

May faced me. "What really happened?"

"I was with Drew, Lionel, and your brother, Max, on a reconnaissance mission in eastern Hoenn. The Resistance was still fairly new back then – we might have been motivated to join, but that didn't mean we knew what we were doing yet – so we foolishly believed that, after investigating some abandoned laboratory that we had wrongly thought contained hidden info on the Chimera Project, that that was it. But, we had attracted a fusion's attention – a smart fusion – on our way back. It didn't just come after us. It herded up its buddies and followed us to our base.

"In the middle of the night, they all attacked. We struggled to defend ourselves. The Resistance Reconnaissance team for Hoenn had had over thirty members, but we were all in this one base, and we were slaughtered one by one. Before I knew it, the Hoenn Resistance only had twenty members left, then ten, then nine…it went down so fast…there were bodies and blood everywhere, and the fusion numbers had barely depleted."

May swallowed hard. I looked at her.

"I remember," I said, "there was one fusion in the group. A scyther-like one. It was heading toward Drew. I intercepted the fusion before it reached him and managed to push it away, but not without it stabbing me with its blades. I remember falling to the ground. I remember Drew dropping to his knees by my side with tears in his eyes, holding me in his arms, begging Arceus not to take me – that losing you had been hard enough for him."

May shook. I hesitated before I continued.

"I told him to go on without me. He protested, but he also knew I had no chance. I closed my eyes and…everything went silent. But, it didn't end there. I woke up after what felt like hours. I was still in the Resistance base, but it was obvious that Drew, Lionel, Max, and any other survivors of the ambush had fled. The fusions were still there, scouting around, and I thought that if I hadn't died when I'd been stabbed, then surely I was going to be eaten alive or turned into a fusion. I couldn't move on my own, at least not without being noticed. I just laid there, wondering what was going to happen, thinking of all the things that had led up to that point…

"Then, something walked over to me. I couldn't tell what it was. It looked canine, like a wolf or something. I knew it was a fusion, but all it did was stare at me with those red eyes. No snarling. No bloodlust. Nothing. It knew I was alive, but it didn't pose a threat. It reached down to grab the back of my shirt with its teeth, and it pulled me out of the base and to some hospital, where I was discovered by survivors that had taken refuge in it. They patched me up and practically saved me from the brink of death…"

"What happened to that fusion?" May asked.

I frowned. "I don't know. I never saw it again. As soon as I had recovered enough to leave the hospital, all I thought about was if I should contact Drew and re-join the Resistance. Just let him know that I had survived. But…" I narrowed my eyes. "I realized that being with the Resistance had a low chance of getting me anywhere. Everything was taking too long for me, and I wouldn't be able to help Malcolm through it as much as I wanted to.

"So, I went out on my own. I trained myself to fight. Within the military database, I had already been listed as deceased. I made sure it stayed that way. With some personal connections, I managed to remove Malcolm's profile from the database, in case any enemies who somehow knew who I really was couldn't hurt him."

"And you became…this," May said, eyes dark.

"Yeah. Through my clients, I obtained money, which I used to ensure Malcolm had a decent living in this world. Since he was born, he has stayed with Cary here in the Dewford sanctuary. Some of the money has been used to pay her, so she'll keep watching him for me while I'm gone."

May frowned at that. "So, you really did become an assassin to take care of Malcolm?"

I looked at her out of the corner of my eye. Her tone reminded me of Ratchet's. I grunted. "Is there a problem with that?"

"Well," she said, "I have to admit, there's probably better ways to take care of him."

"You have your ways, and I have mine."

May stood up. "But, does Drew even know you're alive?"

"No. It'd probably be better if it stayed that way."

"_What_?" May furrowed her brows. "You left the Resistance to become Artemis? To kill people for money? How is this better?"

I said nothing.

May stepped forward. "Did you ever stop to think how wrong this is? It's bad enough fusions are killing people, but you're doing the same thing to take care of a son you should just be there for! I mean, Drew doesn't even know you're alive! Did you ever stop to think what he feels? What if he…" She hesitated. "What if he dies tomorrow? How would you feel to lose someone so close to you because you didn't do anything!"

At that, I snarled. I pulled my armored glove off and showed my hand to May.

May looked down at my fingers. Her brows rose as she noticed the wedding band on my ring finger, dimmed with age.

"It wouldn't be the first time I lost someone close to me," I hissed. "It wouldn't be the first time I wasn't able to do _anything_."

May swallowed her words. Slowly, she met my eyes.

"Soledad…I…"

I turned away from her and slipped my glove back on. My heart ached within my chest.

"Harley…" I heard May say. "You're not just doing this for Malcolm, are you? You really became Artemis, because of what happened to Harley."

I looked down. "Maybe. Maybe the Resistance was just too slow for me, and maybe that's one of the reasons why I didn't re-join. Maybe I knew that if enough businesses trusted me, then I would eventually be recommended to whoever led the fusions and Kruismara. Maybe I knew that, despite that this would end with blood on my hands…it would be worth everything to know that the people who took half of my heart away had suffered even more pain."

"Soledad…"

I turned to her. "You said you needed a bodyguard until you get to Lilycove, right?"

"Soledad-"

I shook my head. "I don't work without payment."

May sighed, as if she wanted to protest. But she said nothing as she walked past me, grabbed a briefcase from behind another seat, and handed it to me. I opened it. The entire inside was filled with money, gathered in those familiar stacks of thousands.

I nodded, closed the briefcase and set it down, and reached for my helmet. I tied my hair back up and slipped my helmet on. I grabbed my rifle from my back and looked at May.

"Drive. I'll keep watch."

* * *

I sat at the back of the truck, where we had opened the bed so I could look out for anything that might follow us. I would've suggested to May that we fly to Lilycove, but my charizard could only carry one person, and I had given my pidgeot to Malcolm long ago. So, this was our only method of transportation, and we had to make do with what we had.

I gazed out at the mist-covered ocean as we crossed the bridge that connected Dewford Island to the Hoenn mainland. I didn't need to look over my shoulder to know that May was throwing glances at me every now and then. I could feel her eyes, and I could hear the depressed sigh that escaped her with each look. She was probably thinking about our prior discussion – on the reasons why I had become Artemis, and everything that was supposedly wrong with it.

_Did you ever stop to think what Drew feels?_

I had tried. I had tried to visit the various Resistance bases across Hoenn, just to see if he was okay. But I never did. I had tried to wonder if Drew was alone. But I never had. I had tried to understand what Drew would possibly be feeling right now. But I never could.

I forced myself to let go of emotions when I became Artemis. So how could I understand anything?

I slipped my glove off and gazed at my wedding band.

How could I go back to everyone, when I had already walked so far away from them?

* * *

It took three days to drive all the way up to Lilycove. We had a few encounters with fusions – groups that, by herself, May would've not come out unscathed – but we dusted ourselves off and kept going. When the skyscrapers of Lilycove came into view, their supports visible through smoldering matter, like flesh that had been burned off a skeleton, I directed her toward the Resistance base I remembered from four years ago.

It was a building that looked small on the outside; only two stories up, but gave way to a large headquarters beneath the ground. I told May to stop a mile away from it.

"You're leaving?" she asked as I grabbed the briefcase of money.

"You're here," I said. "There's no need for me to stay. Maybe we'll meet again. Who knows?"

"But…" May's voice trailed off, as if she knew nothing she said would change anything. She met my eyes through my one-way visor. "How do you know I won't tell Drew about you?"

I shifted. "Maybe I hope you're one of those few people I can still trust."

I opened the truck's door and stepped out.

"Then I hope I can still trust you, too," May said.

And she drove away behind me.


	8. The Hoenn Resistance

**-May-**

I wasn't surprised when I couldn't see Soledad after I had parked my truck two buildings down from the Resistance base. Like the assassin she was, Soledad had disappeared into thin air, as quick as shadows and just as dark. That ache I had developed after I'd been told that she was supposedly dead had only grown sharper. I didn't know what to think, or what I could do.

So, I forced myself to push the thought aside, and I moved forward toward the Resistance base that was, as Soledad had pointed out, disguised as a mere two-story building. I stayed silent and kept my ears open. The streets of Lilycove looked deserted, but looks meant nothing in the end. I kept my hand in my pocket, fingering Blaziken's pokeball, trying my best to keep the nervousness in my stomach at bay. Quiet as I might have been, if my insides screamed at me to run, a fusion would hear that over anything else.

As I came up to the door into the base, I saw movement on the second floor. Through one of the windows, a figure looked out, eyes narrowed. It was a human, which filled me with a sense of relief. He looked somewhat older than me. His hair was short and colored dark lavender. It went well with his eyes, which I could tell were black, even with the distance between us.

He frowned, his arched brow his only sign of surprise at the sight of me. He rested the shotgun he held against the wall beside him and looked over his shoulder. He called out for someone. I couldn't hear what he said from my position, but seconds later, another figure appeared beside him.

This time, it was a woman, younger than the man. Long, dark blue hair curled past her shoulders, her matching eyes bright. Her face was smooth and slender, like the rest of her. There was something familiar about her, but I couldn't place it.

She looked at the man beside her, whose frown didn't move, and she looked back at me.

"Hello?" she called down to me. "Do you need help?"

I glanced around – just to make sure I was at the right building. "I'm looking for the Resistance," I said.

The man crossed his arms. "What for?"

"I want to join it."

The woman looked at the man again. Her eyes darkened, as if she was suspicious, but I couldn't blame her.

"What's your name?" the woman asked.

"May," I said. "May Maple." I paused. "Though, I'm probably now listed as May Trandafir."

At that, the woman froze. The man's frown twitched – a real sense of emotion behind his obvious callousness.

"May Trandafir?" the woman said slowly. "Are you…are you really May Trandafir?"

I nodded.

"But…" The woman swallowed, her voice quiet, to where I barely heard her. "Drew said…Drew said-" She looked at the man. "Didn't Drew say that-"

"Pointless to determine anything now," the man replied, his calmness contradicting his partner's. "Let her in. She doesn't look much like a threat anyway."

I didn't know if I was supposed to find that offensive, but all I thought about was how the woman had mentioned Drew. Before I could say anything, though, the woman and her partner disappeared. Minutes later, the front door opened, and I met the woman face to face, her partner right behind her. They were both dressed in black armor and looked like perfect material for a modern war novel.

"Sorry about that questioning stuff," the woman said with a nervous chuckle. "Gotta make sure you're not working for the bad guys."

I shrugged sheepishly.

"Anyway," she said. "My name's Dawn. Dawn Berlitz." She pointed at her partner. "That's Paul Slate. And if you're looking for the Resistance, then you're at the right place." Her eyes softened. "And if you really are who you say you are, then it's a good thing you're here."

* * *

Dawn and Paul led me through the building, which seemed to be your average abandoned office space. However, toward the very back of the lobby, Dawn pushed in a section of the plain white wall, revealed a keypad beneath it, and punched in a code that unlocked a door hidden behind a broken book shelf not far from the building's main elevator. Through the door was a staircase, its steps distinguishable only by the faint lights installed into the black walls.

I looked at the walls, and then I looked at the dark suits that Dawn and Paul wore. Yeah, this was definitely what I'd been expecting from a top-secret reconnaissance organization.

"You may not remember, May," Dawn said as she guided me down the stairs, Paul behind me, "but you and I faced each other in the Wallace Cup competition a long time ago."

I blinked. "Oh yeah, that's why you're familiar!" I frowned. "But what are you doing here? Aren't you a Sinnoh native?"

Dawn nodded. "Paul and I both are. We were part of the Sinnoh Resistance a year back, but the Hoenn team was low on members, so we were transferred over here to help them out."

I hummed. "You said something about Drew earlier," I said, "when we were outside. What did you mean?"

Dawn paused, but then moved again before I bumped into her back. "Drew is the leader for the Hoenn Resistance. He wasn't originally, but the Hoenn team has lost so many leaders in the past, so it's not really expected for us to appoint one anymore. Still, Drew kind of took over the job. He's the most brave out of all of us, but…" She sighed. "He's also the most broken."

I swallowed hard.

"Drew tries his best to not talk about it," Dawn said, "but even when Paul and I first arrived here, we knew something heavy was on his shoulders, motivating him to take on the leader role. Eventually, we found out that it was because of you. You disappeared five years ago, and Drew was convinced that you'd been killed by something related to this whole Chimera thing. We all thought the same."

"That mentioned," Paul said from behind me, "I'm still trying to figure out how the hell you're walking in front of me right now."

I frowned. "Well-"

"Don't worry about it," Dawn said. "You can explain it when everyone's here."

I looked over Dawn's shoulder. I could see an opening ahead, giving way to a much brighter room.

"Is…Is Drew really here?" I asked.

"No," Dawn said. "At least not right now. He and Lionel are out gathering supplies. They should be back soon. But, in the mean time…"

"Dawn?"

I stopped. _That voice…_

Dawn smiled at me and allowed me to move past her - into the room at the bottom of the stairs. It looked like an average staying room, with multiples couches and chairs, and hallways leading into separate rooms that contained beds and bathrooms. Across from us was a room filled with computers; I could see the glow of a monitor reflect off the opened door, and I could hear the whirring of running machines.

From that room emerged a man I could recognize by voice alone.

Max Maple.

My brother.

"Dawn, I-"

Max stopped in place when he noticed me, his mouth open, his words forgotten, and his eyes widened behind his glasses as he stared. He looked just as neat and civilized as he had in his archive photo. You would have never expected he was part of the Resistance; he looked more like an Arceus Witness.

"It…it can't be," he said, his voice quiet.

Paul snorted. "Oh yeah, by the way, your sister's not dead."

* * *

It was hard to pry Max off of me after that. I wanted to hug him – I had missed him so much – but I needed to breathe sooner or later. When we finally separated, Max and I sat on the couch, while Paul and Dawn took seats across from us. From then, I tried my best to give a short version of what happened to me, only answering major questions, and keeping all of the little details out until Drew and Lionel returned.

When I was done, Max told me what had happened after I had been reported missing. A lot of people had believed I was dead. Those close to me found various ways of coping with it, including my mother and father, and others had used my death as motivation to fight the fusions, such as in Max's case when he had joined the Resistance beside Drew, Lionel, and Soledad.

He then told me that Soledad had died four years ago.

I swallowed hard at this, knowing that she was very well alive, but I kept my mouth shut and displayed the sorrow I normally would have.

"Did Drew find someone else?" I asked, finally uttering the question that had bothered me since I was brought back to life. "Has he moved on?"

Max shook his head. "No. After you went missing, all he focused on was the Resistance. He tried to move on, but it never worked out. He always came back saying that it started with you, and it would end the same way."

I exhaled slowly. I grew warm inside at the idea that Drew had remained loyal, even though all evidence said I was never coming back. But, I pushed the feeling aside for later, figuring that I couldn't do anything until he and Lionel returned. So, I moved on to the next matter at hand:

"How does the Resistance work, anyway?" I asked.

Max leaned forward. "Every region has a group of military soldiers assigned for locating and retrieving information about the Chimera Project that could be used for defeating the fusions. All together, these soldiers are known as the Resistance Reconnaissance Service, or just 'the Resistance' for short. With each region-based Resistance team, there's a leader, along with other members that may serve as information retrievers, hackers, weapon builders – anything that could help the cause.

"As Dawn and Paul might have already told you, Drew is the leader for the Hoenn Resistance. I'm the data gatherer, as in I'm usually hacking any locked systems or decoding cryptic files, or just analyzing important information in general. Dawn is skilled in the usage of blades and handguns, Paul's our heavy weapons specialist, and Lionel serves as our sniper and lookout."

I looked at Paul and Dawn. "Wow."

"Wasn't easy to learn all this stuff," Dawn said, pulling a knife from a sheath on her side, "but the situation unfortunately called for it."

Paul grunted. "And I wanted to be a pokemon trainer."

I looked back at Max. He frowned and shook his head.

"Do you know the leaders for the other regions?" I asked.

"Cynthia of the Sinnoh Elite Four leads the Sinnoh Resistance team," Max said. "Ash leads the Kanto team-"

"Ash?" I blinked. "As in, Ash Ketchum?"

"You're surprised, too?" Paul mumbled.

Max nodded. "We all play a part. With the size of the fusion armies, all regions seem to have some clues about them."

Before I could say anything else, I heard the sound of a door opening and shutting. Then, voices. Familiar voices. I looked behind me. A blond-haired man came down the stairs minutes later, carrying bags of what looked like food and ammo. Seconds later, another figure came down the stairs.

My breathing stopped.

"Drew…" I whispered.

At that, Drew looked up.

He saw me.

He froze, widened eyes focused on mine.

And Paul snorted, just as he had done before.

"Oh yeah, by the way, your girlfriend's not dead."


	9. No Stone Unturned

**-Soledad-**

I tried to regain my thoughts as I ordered my charizard to land in the forested area beneath us. I was a few hours away from Lilycove now, but I needed some time to think where I could look for another assignment. Clients were everywhere – arrogant businessmen desperate to simplify the competition, or high-and-mighty leaders disgruntled by unfaithful spouses. Whatever the case was, I needed to go where the work went. Though Malcolm probably had enough money to last him a few years, I had to keep searching for the Arbiter Corporation, which meant gaining the trust of anyone who could lead me to them.

Setting my rifle down beside me, I leaned against a dying tree trunk. Charizard kept watch and gave me a chance to close my eyes. Images of May filled my head, and her words ran laps through my ears.

_Then I hope I can still trust you, too._

I wasn't surprised that she thought that way – and that I hadn't exactly turned out to be what she expected to see when compared to five years ago.

After all, I certainly hadn't expected this.

I sighed and reached up to unlatch my helmet. I needed some real air-

I paused when a window opened up on the side of my visor - a capability from its electronic components. It flashed red, which meant my helmet had picked up the radio waves of a distress signal. I tapped my helmet's side, and the window widened across my visor, allowing me to hear what the signal said:

"Mayday…monster…going down."

The male voice was heavily distorted. Anything apart from those three words were blocked out by static and what sounded like screams and growls. But, those three words were really all I needed to have an idea of what to be prepared for.

Fusions, and they had attacked a military-based vehicle.

I grabbed my rifle and ran out of the forest, my charizard behind me. I stopped at the road and looked in each direction, trying to pinpoint where the signal was coming from. I turned to look behind me.

At that, the voice from the signal became louder. In the sky a fiery shape broke free from the dark clouds that had obscured it. It was a military dropship, with flames bursting from its sides. The roar of its engines echoed across the hollow air as it headed toward the ground. It flew over me, and I caught a closer glimpse of its cockpit window, smeared with blood and smoke. The ground shook when the aircraft crashed behind a hill a half a mile away from me. I told Charizard to stay put and keep watch, and I made my way toward the hill.

The dropship had left a long, deep ditch in its wake, starting not far from the bottom of the hill. Pieces of metal littered the field, probably having broken off when the ship first made contact with the ground. Fires still reached out from the ship's sides, consuming its engines and everything inside of the cockpit.

I readied my rifle and headed toward the ship. From the outside, it looked like no one would have survived the crash, but I couldn't walk away there. Though I separated myself from the military, a chance to save a soldier was something I wouldn't go out of my way to avoid, even if it meant I had to hightail it afterward before he realized who I was.

I slowed my pace as I approached the ship. I inspected the outer area for survivors, and then I turned to the cockpit and any place of the main compartment that I could reach without getting burned. Nothing. I couldn't see any fatalities. I also couldn't distinguish burnt bodies from the rest of the ship's remains.

Pulling back, I sighed.

"Rest in peace, guys…"

I turned my head, wondering where the fusions behind this had gone.

As if to answer my question, a growl emanated from the ship's compartment, only a little louder than the crackle of the flames. Before I could aim my gun, a figure burst out of the fire.

I was knocked to the ground, the figure pinning me. It was a fusion, red eyes glaring at me, oversized fangs bared and dripping with saliva. Its claws dug into my side; though my armor provided protection from the sharpness, I could still feel the pressure. Wings flapped from its back, caging me like another set of arms.

Harpies. The name commonly associated with winged fusions.

The harpy snarled at me. My rifle had been kicked out of reach, and I mentally scolded myself for having been open to the attack. To make matters worse, two more harpies emerged from the ship's compartment, making their way toward their partner, hungry eyes glued to me. With how the flames hadn't affected any of them, I assumed they were part fire type. I doubted they were the results of the ship's crew infected with the Chimera Virus; it usually took more than a few minutes for a mortal to fully transform. So, these were probably the guys that had caused the crash to begin with.

Opening its mouth, the harpy lowered its head to bite me on the shoulder. I managed to free my arm before its teeth grazed my armor and slam my fist into its side. It cried out, and I used that moment to grab a knife from my belt and plunge it into the fusion's back. It got off at that, whimpering as it tried to reach the knife buried into the flesh behind its wing.

I got to my feet and kicked the second harpy square in the chest when it lunged for me, throwing it against the ship. Its buddy glared at me and, claws glowing, moved forward to impale me. I dodged one arm and grabbed the other, using it to pin the fusion against me and move my hands to its head. With one quick movement, I snapped its neck and then kicked its lifeless body to the ground.

Hearing another growl, I spun – and saw the harpy that I had stabbed approach me. It had managed to remove my knife, but blood poured from its back now. Still, it didn't seem to hinder it, as all the fusion focused on was me. At the sound of a second growl, I looked over my shoulder and saw the other harpy recover from my kick, shaking its head to orient itself.

Then, a bigger growl. One I recognized.

The harpy I had stabbed didn't have time to look to the side before it was grabbed by my charizard. Unfazed by its squirming and snarling, Charizard slammed the fusion into the ground and sliced its throat with his claws.

Two down, one to go.

I rolled to the side right as the last harpy would've hit me. I grabbed my rifle from the ground and fired a few rounds into the fusion. Despite the multiple holes in its chest, it reached for me, but all it did was choke up blood and fall on its front.

I exhaled. When nothing else popped up, I hooked my rifle along my back and patted Charizard on the neck when he came up to my side.

"Thanks for the save," I said.

Charizard smiled and nodded.

I looked at the dead harpies. My feeling of security dimmed as I thought more and more about the crash. Would the crew of a dropship really fall to just three harpies? The more I contemplated it, the more it didn't seem likely. With how much arsenal a soldier carried on a regular basis, the dropship – and the crew – went down too easily for such a minor attack.

Something else had brought the ship down.

I gazed up at the sky, but I couldn't see anything. I turned my thermal vision on-

I stepped back at the immediate sight of a red figure flying between the clouds. It wasn't the figure's presence that stunned me; it was its size.

The figure emerged from the clouds seconds later, heading toward the crash site. I couldn't see what it exactly was from the darkness of the sky, but I already had an idea – an idea that made me swallow hard, return Charizard to his pokeball, and make my way across the field as fast as I could to the sanctuary of the forest on the other side. I hid behind a thick tree trunk and looked back toward the crash site.

The fusion landed on the ground with a loud stomp by the dropship. It craned its long neck and looked at the field through those familiar full red eyes. The white feathers that covered its body were ruffled in various places, making way for a majority of spikes and scales - where blood poured freely in places where the skin had probably ruptured from the fusion transformation. Claws sprouted from the finger- and toe-like appendages at the end of its wings and feet, its multiple tails whipped around behind it, and it opened its mouth, revealing large fangs and letting out a roar that shook the ground like the stomp that had preceded it.

Lugia.

The Chimera Virus had reached the legendaries.

"Fuck," I muttered.

Lugia inspected the dead harpies by the dropship. It tilted its head. Then, it let out a second roar, as if angered by the deaths of its brethren. But if Lugia really had been turned into a fusion through the Virus, then it probably didn't give a damn about the harpies and was only frustrated that it hadn't been here in time to eat their killer.

With a flap of its wings, Lugia took off into the air, flying over the trees where I hid and heading toward the horizon.

There was no way the Arbiter Corporation would let something as big as a legendary being infected happen without their knowledge. Lugia's infection and fusion transformation had been on purpose, and, undoubtedly, they had something planned for it.

I stayed low and followed Lugia.

* * *

A few hours later, my legs ached. I had followed Lugia at least halfway across the region on foot. I would've flown on my charizard, but that probably would've caught Lugia's attention. Though I was able to handle regular fusions, a fusion legendary whose size could rival Kruismara's even made me a little bit hesitant.

But, I didn't stop. I wouldn't stop. If Lugia could lead me to something that would help me locate the Arbiter Corporation, then I couldn't stop.

Lugia slowed down when we approached a small campsite obscured away by the rocky terrain. I hid behind a nearby boulder and watched as Lugia circled the area, as if following a command. Among the camp, armed men patrolled the grounds, guarding the various tents placed around the site.

And so did fusions.

Fusions followed the guards as if they were obedient pokemon. They didn't move unless the guard they assisted did. With the short revealing of the moon above, I could see the guards' eyes glow.

Red. They were red, like the fusions', though the color was limited to their irises rather than their full eyes.

What the hell?

I looked at one of the tents. I tapped the side of my helmet to zoom in my vision and read the words imprinted on one of the flaps.

_Arbiter Corporation_

Jackpot.


	10. Return to Innocence

**-May-**

With Drew sitting across from me, and the others scattered around the room, I retold the story of how I had gotten here. This time, I included all of the small details. I mentioned how Ellis and Moira brought me back to life, I mentioned how we linked Max and Drew to the Resistance through the military's database, and I mentioned how I had traveled all the way up here from Slateport to accomplish what Ellis and Moira had brought me back to life for – joining the Resistance. I also explained the cause of my death; how Jericho, Verdana's protégé and leader of the Arbiter Corporation, was the one who killed me five years ago, using a detective alias to hunt down the people involved in his mentor's murder.

"Jericho Karvás is the leader of Arbiter Corp," Lionel said. "Why am I not surprised?"

I blinked. "Wait, the Resistance knows about the Arbiter Corporation? But Moira said-"

Max cut me off with a nod. "All of the military has known about Arbiter Corp for a while now. We've been trying our best to keep this fact a secret, because we don't want Arbiter Corp getting nervous and doing something drastic. That said, well…the reason we haven't stopped them yet is because we can't find them."

"So technically," Dawn said, "the Resistance isn't only for discovering stuff about the Chimera Project, but we're also assigned to locate and arrest members of Arbiter Corp. Since they're connected, it's kinda like-"

"Killing two pidgey with one stone," Paul said.

Dawn narrowed her eyes at him. "Do you have to be so gruesome?"

"Do you have to be so annoying?"

Lionel cupped his chin thoughtfully, ignoring Paul and Dawn's bickering. "We didn't know that Jericho Karvás was the leader of Arbiter Corp, though. That helps in giving our enemy a face."

I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out, because Drew stood up from his chair. Silent, his darkened eyes met mine. He exhaled slowly, turned, and then disappeared down the hallway that led into the staying rooms.

My chest ached. Ever since Drew had returned and saw that I was still alive, he had said nothing, only sitting down when I requested so that I could explain to him what had happened. Even through my story, he remained quiet, and now he had walked away as if I'd never came – as if the person talking to him wasn't May Maple.

"Uh…" Max trailed off, exchanging glances with Paul and Dawn.

"Go talk to Drew, May," Lionel said, helping me to my feet. "We'll worry about business later."

I nodded and made my way after Drew.

* * *

"Drew?"

I slipped through the door into Drew's room. It was medium-sized, with a bed, a nightstand, a couple of drawers, and lamps here and there. Drew stood by the bed, his back to me and his face in his hand.

"Drew…" I said, closing the door behind me. "Drew, look at me."

Slowly, he turned. His eyes were still dark. A few seconds passed before he crossed my gaze.

"Why did you walk away?" I asked, my voice soft.

"I…" He swallowed hard. "I don't want to get close to you."

"Why?"

"Because any second now I'm going to wake up, and you're going to be gone all over again."

"Drew…" I walked closer to him. "This isn't a dream. It's me. It's really me."

Drew shook his head. "But, how? How can you be here? It's been five years. I've spent five years thinking that you were…gone. I've spent five years thinking that I lost you."

My eyes grew wet. I touched his arm. His body was covered in black armor, but warmth still filled me as if I had touched his skin. "Drew," I said, "what Jericho did…I regret that it happened. Before I left that day, I made a promise that I would come back soon." I met his eyes again. "And I broke that promise."

Drew smiled weakly. "You broke _your_ promise? May, when we were down in Enfer City, I kept a promise to myself that I wouldn't let anything happen to you, even if we got out of there. I broke _my_ promise, May. I let that bastard hurt you, and…and by the time I realized it, you were already gone."

He stepped back and turned away.

"I've lived with the guilt for five years," he said, "and then Soledad died, and I knew that by letting that happen, I had let Harley down."

"Drew-"

"Ever since this shit began, broken promise after broken promise has followed me. I joined and stayed in the Resistance just so I could pretend that doing this would make up for all those broken promises."

"Drew-"

"This isn't fifteen years ago," Drew said. "We're not teenagers anymore. We're not that happy family of four. We're not traveling the regions with the sun in our faces, competing in contests, and spending the end of the day laughing at dumb jokes like there wasn't a care in the world. Harley and Soledad are gone because of these Arceus damn fusions. That world is gone because of these Arceus damn fusions. Everything we knew is gone because of these Arceus damn fusions." He closed his eyes. "I'm not the person you knew fifteen years ago when we were still rivals, or five years ago when we were together. Before you were my lover, you were my friend, and either way I told myself I would always protect you. Those ten years where I was gone, we made up for them, but this…letting you die, because I didn't protect you, because I couldn't protect Soledad, because I couldn't save Harley…"

I reached for Drew, but I stopped before my fingers brushed his back. I wanted to tell him that what Jericho did to me wasn't his fault – that none of us knew of Jericho's connection to Verdana or that the fusions had survived Enfer's detonation. I wanted to tell him that Soledad was alive, and even with the ambush incident four years ago she wasn't mad at him for what happened to her. I wanted to tell him that none of us could've saved Harley; that his sacrifice had been his decision, that he did it so we could all keep going, and that how much Drew cared for Soledad would've been enough to satisfy Harley's expectations any day.

I wanted to tell him that he didn't need to make up for anything. He didn't need to be a hero as much as he just needed to be Drew.

But, I said nothing. Instead, I walked closer to him. I slowly wrapped my arms around his abdomen and leaned my forehead against his back. I could hear his shaky breathing. He paused at my touch, but I didn't pull away. No matter what he said – no matter what he believed – I wasn't going to pull away.

I stood high on my toes – enough to reach his neck, and I kissed the back of it through his hair.

"I remember," I said, my voice a whisper against his skin, "I remember the night we spent together down in Enfer City before the fusions attacked. I remember the feel of your touch, the smell of your body, and the taste of your skin. It was enough to make me forget everything else."

I trailed my hand up Drew's chest. I felt his heartbeat through his armor. He inhaled. I felt that, too.

"Even though I was angry," I said, "I realized that what my heart felt was far more important than what my brain did. Since we were teenagers, I had feelings for you, but I ignored them like an idiot, thinking they were just the result of how much we'd been through together – how much you really meant to me."

I moved my hand to his side. A belt-like switch held the armor to his chest. I undid it.

"The first thing I thought about when I woke up was you. Arceus, I had missed you so much. I worried for you and I wanted to see you; and I knew that even if another ten or five years passed, that need would never change."

I undid a similar switch on the other side of his chest.

"I would love you for you. Even in times where you thought you didn't deserve it, I would love you."

With a click, the chest piece separated into two. Before I could take it off of him, he grabbed my wrists. His gloves masked his touch, but even through those his hold was soft.

"Just be Drew," I said. "You never had to be anything else."

He inhaled again, and he let go of my wrists. I took the armor piece off of him and let it drop to the floor, along with his gloves. He still wore his wedding ring – the one I had given him. Warmth filled me. I brushed my own ring against his, just as I had done on the day I died. Then, I ran my fingers over his bare chest, feeling the dust of hair below his collarbone. I pressed a kiss to the back of his shoulder blade.

Drew turned and met my gaze. His eyes were dark, but not with sadness. They were dark with emotion and desire, focused on me as if I was the most important person in the world.

I kissed him.

He hesitated, but then his lips moved against my own. His arms pulled me closer, his fingers slipping into my hair. His goatee brushed against my chin. His scent of roses and mint flooded my senses, making my legs weak. It had been five years since we kissed, but the effects his touch had on me hadn't changed at all.

Slowly, he pulled away. I looked into his eyes. Emerald. Dragon-like. It sent shivers down my spine.

"I remember," he said, his voice as low as mine – a rumble in his chest that I felt beneath my fingertips, "I remember that night in Enfer City as if it was yesterday. I remember not thinking, just feeling. I remember never wanting to let you go. I thought I was stupid for leaving just because I thought coordinating should've been more important than you, and I felt even more stupid that I spent ten years living with that debate. But, you'd taught me so much – more than you could ever realize – and no matter how many times I tried, I couldn't forget it."

His hands slipped beneath my shirt. I closed my eyes.

"When you disappeared," Drew said, "when Jericho took you away from me and time continued to pass, I tried to move on. I tried to find someone else. But, nothing would work, because I could do nothing but remember you and the guilt I had for your death."

My shirt fell to the ground.

Drew brushed his lips across my neck. "I started to forget the memories – the pieces of time that made us all who we were. With that, I started to forget who I was, and I grew scared."

I reached for his belt. He mirrored me, his fingers tracing my waistline. It wasn't long before those clothes were removed and kicked aside as well, leaving us nude.

"But now you're here," Drew said, "and I can finally remember that-"

"You're not alone," I whispered, kissing him.

And with his body against mine, he lowered me onto the bed.


	11. Hatred

**-Soledad-**

I made my way around the Arbiter Corp campsite. I used boulders for cover, making sure to run to each one as fast as I could and as silent as I could. This wasn't like other situations; I wasn't sneaking my way through a garden being patrolled by mortal men. I didn't know why the Arbiter guards had red eyes, or how they were controlling the fusions by their sides or Lugia up in the air.

What I did remember was that Katherine Verdana had originally commanded the fusions down in Enfer City through Kruismara, who, somehow, was able to "tell" them what to do. I never put much thought into how, and neither did anyone else. Could you blame anyone for not considering it proper dinner conversation? But, these men seemed to be controlling the fusions individually. Even Verdana would've been eaten alive if she had confronted her "grand" fusion army without Kruismara there to tell them not to deep-fry her.

Were these men controlling those fusions the same way Kruismara did? That just brought up the old, unanswered question of how – exactly – Kruismara always had control over the fusions, able to guide them even if they were continents apart.

I remember my talks with May after the Enfer City incident. She explained how Verdana had used an altered sample of the Virus to transform herself into a fusion during their final encounter, both to reflect the monster she always wanted to be and to be able to stand by her fusions without conflict. Did that have something to do with this? That would explain the guards' red eyes – a sign of the Chimera Virus running through their bloodstreams – but that didn't answer the original question of how Kruismara controlled the fusions, or how these fusion-human hybrids were doing the same.

Plus, how had Verdana even controlled Kruismara in the first place, before she had become part fusion?

I calmed my mind before I got lost in my thoughts and focused on the task at hand. This campsite would probably have some answers, even if just for what they had planned for fusion Lugia. Because of this, I knew I shouldn't ready my rifle, run out, and start being all trigger-happy, despite how much my desire for revenge tried to persuade me to do so. There weren't a lot of guards here, but that didn't mean unscathed victory was guaranteed – definitely with Lugia still circling from above.

Still silent, I made my way from boulder to boulder, making sure my armored boots stepped on flat ground. I didn't want to kick a pebble or something, grab the attention of a fusion's enhanced hearing and wake up the whole coop. Toward the other side of the campsite was what looked like some sort of portable, one-story office. Its windows were tinted from the night, but even through those I could see the glow of monitors on the inside. If I was looking for answers, whatever database these guys brought would probably be the best place to start.

I stopped when I reached the back of the office. Tapping the side of my helmet, I turned on my visor's thermal vision and scanned it. I couldn't see the heat signatures of any humans or fusions inside. I looked through one of the windows. Beyond the glow of the computer monitors within the pitch-black room, it seemed empty. I grabbed a knife from my belt and used it to loosen the window. It only took a few seconds; a cheap design, proving that Arbiter Corp wasn't as strict on maintaining security as they should've been.

Opening the window, I climbed my way inside and shut it behind me just as quietly. I looked around again. Still nothing. I could only see the heat signatures of two guards that stood outside of the office's main door, oblivious to my presence. I stayed low and made my way to the computer.

Their files weren't hard to get into. Despite the patrols, this campsite hadn't seemed to expect any cases of infiltration, certain that any groups who tried to sneak in would surely catch the attention of at least one fusion, and any solo workers would lack the skills required to make it this far. Arbiter Corp had obviously grown to underestimate the military, though the fact that the military was slowly losing the battle with the fusion armies probably justified Arbiter Corp's arrogance.

With the amount of information stored on the files, I knew it wasn't safe to try to sort it out in the middle of a campsite filled with fusions. I reached into a small pocket on my belt and pulled out an empty USB flash drive, inserting it into the computer and copying all the files onto it. When it was done, I disconnected the flash drive and slipped it back into my pocket. I would have to review the information later – and hopefully get some of these questions answered, including a bigger understanding on how exactly Arbiter Corp was organized.

_That_ would make my job easier when it came to taking them out.

I heard a click, as if a door had just been opened. I glanced at the office's main door, which swayed ajar, bringing in the cool breeze from outside. I hissed a curse, looked around, and dove for a corner, hugging the wall on the other side. I closed my eyes at the sound of footsteps. As much as that desire for revenge returned, rekindling the urge to jump out and start shooting as many fusions and guards as I could, I suppressed it, knowing that doing so now would be too risky.

My eyes opened when I heard another click. With a look around the corner, I saw that the door had been closed again. More importantly, the entire office was empty – as if someone had just opened the door, looked in to see nothing, and then left to return to his or her business.

I stepped out from behind the corner and sighed. After composing myself, I turned to exit out the same window I came in from.

Then, I paused. To the side of the window, the dark-colored paint on the wall seemed to…move. It came closer to me, its colors changing to blend in with the floor and whatever other objects it covered. But, its movement alone broke the stealth of its camouflage.

As if noticing my awareness, the figure turned off its camouflage. It was a fusion, its red eyes glowing, its reptilian countenance a hideous mixture of various pokemon. Humanoid in stature, it stepped toward me on clawed feet, the dark colors of its scales appearing glossy in the glow from the computer monitors.

The fact that this fusion had been able to camouflage itself hinted at the existence of kecleon DNA in its blood. Despite that the stripe usually found on a kecleon's stomach always remained visible during its camouflage technique, the type of Chimera Virus used on this fusion had probably been altered to remove that flaw. As with other fusions that had specific abilities, kecleon-based fusions had their own codename.

Rogues.

The rogue bared its teeth at me. Then, it roared and lunged.

I dodged it, its claw scraping against my armored thigh. I grabbed a knife from my belt and jabbed it into the rogue's back. It cried out in pain, and I quickly silenced it with another knife into the head and brain, pinning it to the ground. The door opening and closing earlier now made sense – this rogue must've snuck in camouflaged, tricking me into thinking nothing had come in. Fusions weren't dumb.

In fact, I felt like the stupid one.

I heard voices outside – guards and other fusions brought in from the rogue's prior roar. The door flew open. I hissed a curse as I retrieved my knives from the rogue's corpse and faced the guards piling in, guns pointed at me.

They fired. I rolled behind the corner, almost getting hit in the leg. Grabbing my own rifle from my back, I opened up the bomb slot on its grip, dropped a few of the sphere-shaped bombs into my hand, and threw them past the wall. Then, I ran for the window, bracing myself, and I jumped through it.

Glass hit the ground beside me, the voices of the guards following my trail. I got to my feet and ran as far as I could, reaching the safety of a boulder – and right as the bombs detonated.

The force of the explosion pushed me to the ground, the heat nipping at my skin beneath my armor. My helmet protected my ears, but the proximity to it still made them ring, disorientating me. As the moment calmed down, I shook my head, muttering a curse.

I looked past the boulder. The office was gone, replaced by burning rumble and billows of black smoke. However, it didn't end there, as more guards and fusions approached the site, searching for the culprit of the explosion. One of the fusions – a regular scout – spotted me, as it glared and roared, bringing everyone else to look in my direction. More fusions ran for me.

It looked like there was no running from this. I grabbed two knives from my belt and readied myself for the approaching fusions.

One moved ahead from its buddies, lunging, claws glowing with an attack. I dodged it and stabbed my knives into the sides of its head. I pulled the blades out, letting its lifeless body drop to the ground – and just as another fusion tried to intercept me. With one knife, I stabbed that fusion in the heart, and jabbed my other knife into the forehead of a different one. The ground trembling beneath my feet indicated the presence of a linebacker, and I jumped up before it could slam into me with its shield-like arm. I somersaulted over it, grabbed my handgun from my thigh, and fired a few rounds into its fleshy back. It collapsed forward, and I quickly pivoted to fire more rounds into the chests of a few lashers, stopping their elongated tongues from wrapping around me like whips.

Blood covered me toward the end, dripping off my armor. I looked up from the dead fusions all around me and faced the guards. Their red eyes flashed, as if angered by the deaths of the fusions – their brethren. They aimed their guns, but I took shelter behind a boulder before they could fire. One growled out a command, and I heard footsteps as they charged forward to ambush me.

With my handgun still in my hand, I grabbed a flash bomb from its grip. The guards were too close for a regular bomb, so I tossed the flash one outward, listening to it explode, listening to their groans as it blinded their eyes and deafened their ears. I unhooked my rifle from my back, jumped out from behind the boulder, and fired into the group of guards. They fell beside the fusions, their blood joining the steadily growing pool on the ground.

I dropped to my knees and struggled to regain my breath. The whole campsite was dead, and I was finally alone again-

A roar.

Oh shit. Lugia.

I looked up. Fusion Lugia glared down at me from the sky. It flapped its wings, letting out another roar. It lowered toward the ground, as if preparing to land.

"Leviathan," said a voice. "Stay."

Fusion Lugia snarled, but it followed the command, remaining airborne.

The voice's owner emerged from behind a nearby tent. It was a man, either in his late thirties or early forties. Blond, tousled hair fell into his eyes, in which their irises were colored a dark red like the guards'. Unlike them, though, he wore a long, black trench coat that swayed behind him with every step. The Arbiter Corporation's logo - a white, unbalanced judgement scale within a green circle - was on the side flap. He grinned an arrogant grin when I glanced at it, partially removing the age lines from his face.

Then, that grin died away as he surveyed the scene before him.

"What a waste," he said, nudging the body of a dead guard with his boot. "All these men had just got started on the Hybrid Phase. They hadn't even developed their powers yet, and you have to come in here and screw that up. What a waste. Of flesh, I mean." He looked at me. "You're pretty good with handling those weapons of yours, coming in here and causing all this commotion."

Hybrid Phase? I shook the thought away. Those files I downloaded would probably tell me what that was.

But, first, I had to get out of this alive.

I aimed my rifle at him.

"Touchy, aren't we?" he said, grinning again. "The name's Alistair. I'm one of the heads of the Arbiter Corporation."

My hold on my gun tightened.

Alistair's eyes flickered, as if he had seen my movement. "I take it you got something against what we're doing here? Well, good. It gives me an even greater reason to stay. You see, I can easily just call down the Leviathan to swallow you up in one gulp, but since you took out my men and fusions, I figured it might be a little more interesting to see how you would do against the likes of an actual hybrid." He checked his watch. "I got…ten minutes before my ride gets here. Let's see what you really got."

As soon as he took a step forward, I fired my rifle.

His body moved with lightning speed, dodging every bullet. He practically appeared as a mist, colored black from the hue of his trench coat, leaving me to nearly drop my gun from shock. Just as fast as he had done that, he was walking normal again, approaching me with that same sadistic grin on his face, red eyes glowing. He laughed. "You're gonna have to try better than that."

I growled, dropped my rifle, and grabbed two knives from my belt. I ran toward him, feigning a lunge toward the left so I could open up his right side. But, he seemed to catch on as soon as I moved, as he grabbed my arms, twisted them until I dropped the knives, and then kneed me in the stomach. I groaned, but managed to regain myself, going for a punch in his jaw. He dodged that, too, his body shifting into that black-colored mist – multiple pokemon evasion attacks all gathered up into a single ability.

Before I could even figure out where he was, he smirked, clenched his hand into a fist, and uppercut me. My head flew back. I heard something click, and the night's cold air washed over the skin on my face like a wave. I hit the ground, hearing my helmet land farther away. I swallowed hard and tried to sit forward. My hair ran down my back; the clip that held it up had also been broken from the punch.

Alistair towered over me. "Ah, so the secret identity of our masked hero is finally revealed." He frowned. "Hmm. Now that I think about it, you do look kind of familiar." His eyes flashed with recognition. "Oh! Now I remember! Weren't you a famous coordinator a long time ago? Like, one of the biggies?"

I glared at him, spitting out blood, climbing to a kneel.

"Yeah!" he said. "And you were married, weren't you? To that other famous coordinator? Wait, didn't he die down in Enfer City? I remember hearing it mentioned. What was his name…? Charley? Harlan? Oh wait, that's right! Harley-"

"_Don't you fucking dare say his name_!" I hissed.

I lunged forward to punch Alistair again. He intercepted it, grabbing my fist, eyeing me as I struggled against his grip.

"Look at you," he said. "All that anger in your eyes. You should be careful. Anger can get you killed."

I snarled. "You damn bastard!"

"Language, my dear. Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?"

Alistair looked up. The sounds of helicopter blades grew louder from the distance. He met my eyes again, still holding my fist.

"My ride's here." He smiled. "It was fun, but you're not as tough as I thought you'd be. Maybe I just need to hire tougher employees."

He let go of my fist and kicked me in the side, knocking me down to the ground again.

"Leviathan," he called out. "Come. You can finish what I started."

Fusion Lugia roared from above. As a helicopter touched ground on the far side of the camp, Alistair climbed into it, motioned to the pilot, and waved at me playfully. The helicopter took off into the air, heading toward the horizon, leaving me to switch my glare to fusion Lugia – "Leviathan" – as it landed before me, growling.

I rolled to the side before its clawed tail impaled me. I returned to my feet, trying my best to ignore the explosion of pain in my stomach and the ache in my jaw. If those punches had been from a mortal, I would've been able to walk them off, but the fact that they came from a person whose DNA had been successfully combined with that of a fusion's, my faintness was expected.

I grabbed my helmet and my rifle from the ground. With the Leviathan right behind me, I didn't have time to grab any of the knives I had dropped, so I just released my charizard, climbed onto his back, and ordered him to take off. When he saw what was chasing us, he didn't hesitate at all.

The Leviathan flew into the air with us, stretching its long neck to grab Charizard with its teeth. He dodged it, veering to the left, the Leviathan growling with annoyance. It lunged again. Charizard climbed higher into the air, his tail almost brushing the feathers at the base of the legendary's head, proving the closeness. When the Leviathan opened its mouth to fire a beam in our direction, Charizard dipped downward, turning up right when we would've crashed into the tops of the trees below.

I looked behind me. The legendary followed, reaching our speed with ease. I could feel Charizard whimper beneath me, exhausted and nervous. I struggled to come up with a plan.

"Charizard!" I said. "Veer left! Try to get it to parallel you!"

Charizard grunted in response. He swerved to the side, and the Leviathan quickened its speed, coming up to our right.

At that, I stood up on Charizard's back, and I leaped over onto the Leviathan's. It screeched, turning, trying to throw me off. I grabbed my rifle, dropped a bomb from its grip into my hand, and stuck it underneath one of the beast's spine flaps. Then, I motioned to Charizard. I jumped back over to him, and we swerved farther to the left.

The bomb detonated. With a cry of pain, the Leviathan was smothered in a cloud of black smoke. It fell out of it, heading toward the ground, where it crashed into the forest below, unmoving.

Charizard flew forward, and I lost complete sight of the Leviathan only seconds later.

* * *

I gazed into the one-way visor of my helmet, seeing myself reflected on its surface.

After escaping the Leviathan, Charizard and I headed toward the eastern side of Hoenn. I knew that going back to that campsite wouldn't change anything; Alistair would be long gone now.

And he knew who I really was.

I gritted my teeth, but I knew there wasn't much I could do about it.

I sighed and reached into my pocket, pulling out the USB flash drive. I opened up a slot in the back of my helmet and inserted the drive, copying all of the information into the database stored within. When it was done, I pulled the drive out, contemplating on what to do with it now. Since I had the information saved in my helmet, I didn't need it anymore.

But…someone else did.

I frowned and looked out toward the horizon. I could see a large, black cloud building up, flashing with lightning and heading in our direction. It would rain soon.

My charizard grunted, walking up to my side. His eyes followed me. He could tell something bothered me.

_Then I hope I can still trust you, too._

I stood up and looked at Charizard, the drive in my hand.

"Let's head toward Lilycove."


	12. Of Grief and Trust

**-May-**

"May?"

I shivered. The bed sheets were weaved around my legs, rustling to my movements. I raised my head from Drew's chest and looked at him, my cheek growing cold; the air to the room felt like ice when compared to his warmth.

He met my eyes. "Did you really come here to join the Resistance?"

I swallowed. Right now, I didn't want to talk about it. I didn't want to break the shell formed around us, protecting us from the responsibilities of the outside world. Since the first time I entered this room and we lost ourselves in making up for the five years of separation between us, I'd fallen in and out of sleep, comforted by Drew's soft breathing and the securing hold of his arms. Every time I woke up, I would look at him, see that he was also awake, and lean in to kiss him. That kiss would turn into a caress. That caress would turn into desire, and before I knew it we were adding another session to the ones we completed before. With every touch, I would forget everything a little bit more.

And that was okay. I didn't want to remember the real world anyway.

I didn't know how much time had passed. Seconds, minutes…I felt like a piece of driftwood on the sea. No sense of navigation – no sense of passing – but completely fine with it, because in the end, it wasn't important. Though I didn't know if it'd been hours since I first reached the Resistance base, being here with Drew was all I wanted. If I never had to leave this bed, I wouldn't.

My head lowered to his chest again. I inhaled. He smelled of roses and mint – his usual scent – with dried sweat and sex mixed in. He smelled wonderful. The real world almost slipped away beneath my fingers again, but I grabbed hold of it before it escaped. I knew I had to confront the task at hand – that I couldn't stay on this bed with Drew forever and ignore my responsibilities.

"Yes," I said, finally answering his question.

Drew shifted beneath me.

"I…I don't know if I can…"

I looked up at him again. His eyes had darkened, and I frowned.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

Drew sighed. "I know Ellis and Moira brought you back to life for various reasons, and one of those reasons was to have you join us and help us fight Arbiter Corp and the fusions. But…we've had a lot of close calls. It's dangerous to be a part of this war. I've lost so many people I know to these monsters, and there have been many times where I've almost died, too." He looked at me. "I don't know if…if I'm strong enough. I don't if I can handle it if something happened to you, when you're thrown into the dangers of fighting this battle."

"Drew-"

"I lost you once," he said. "I just don't know if I can risk losing you again."

I smiled weakly, sat up, and cupped his cheek with my hand. I could see the fear in his eyes, masked by the callousness built by this war.

"I can't hide, Drew," I said. "I can't keep running away. I know you're worried about me. I would be lying if I said I wasn't scared, either, but I also know that I want to fight. We're losing this war, because we're losing hope. The fusions hunt us by our fear, and us hiding is doing nothing but making all those who died before be forgotten in vain." I brushed his lips with my finger. "You lost hope when Soledad died…just as I lost mine when Harley did. But, how will we remember them…when we forget who we are ourselves?"

Drew opened his mouth, but no words came out. He grabbed my hand, his touch soft, his wedding band brushing mine. He eyed it, and I could tell that he wasn't only remembering our times together, but the times he had spent with others. Through his eyes, I could also tell whom he was remembering.

"What happened to Soledad wasn't your fault," I said. "Just like with me and Harley."

He shook his head. "I left Soledad there…when the fusion attacked her. I left her to die."

_After she told you to run – because she wouldn't risk your life for hers._

But I knew I couldn't say that. It would reveal that Soledad was still alive, when she wanted to be forgotten.

Drew laughed softly. "I was there…when Malcolm was born. Soledad's child. He would grow up to look just like Harley. That I was able to tell as soon as I saw him for the first time."

I frowned. I had never thought about Drew's relationship with Malcolm. Did he even know where Malcolm was?

"Even after Soledad passed," I said, "what happened to her son?"

"I don't know," he muttered. "I tried to find him, but his records had been removed from the system, as if he'd never been born. To this day, I still look for him, but this whole war is dragging me away from every sense of the past I want to salvage."

I wanted to tell him where Malcolm was, but I said nothing. Despite that I didn't approve of what Soledad had become, I couldn't break whatever sense of trust I still had with her.

My hand trailed down his chest. "We'll face the problem, but just not now – just not for a little bit longer."

His eyes softened. I leaned in and kissed him. His palms ran up my bare back, his fingers drawing imaginary frost along my skin. I moved on top of him, my knees pinning his waist. He groaned into my mouth, and I felt his hands brush my thighs, pushing them apart-

We stopped when someone knocked at the door. When Drew and I only looked at each other, I heard a voice grumble insults on the other side. The person pounded the door this time, and Drew rolled his eyes, as if he already knew who it was.

"You alive in there, boss?" the person asked, his annoyed tone muffled from the door.

I blinked. "Paul?" I whispered to Drew.

"Yes?" Drew called out to Paul. "What is it?"

"We've got a situation. You might want to see this."

Drew frowned. I swallowed hard. He met my eyes again, and we quickly got up to get dressed.

* * *

When Drew and I walked out into the base's living room, everyone else had already gathered in front of a large monitor-like screen Max had pulled out of the wall. It seemed to be connected with the computers in the other room, as the screen displayed an average desktop.

"What's going on?" Drew asked.

Everyone looked in our direction, as if they hadn't even noticed us walking in.

"I found this outside," Dawn said, taking something from Max. She made her way over to us and gave it to Drew, who narrowed his eyes as he examined it. I looked over his shoulder.

It was a USB flash drive. Nothing was marked on it. It didn't seem damaged.

"It was right in front of the door into the base," Dawn said. "I don't mean the obvious building outside door, either. The hidden door that opens up into the base's actual entrance."

"Whoever left it scrammed," Paul added, leaning against the wall, arms crossed. "You think it's something from Arbiter Corp?"

Lionel shook his head. "If Arbiter Corp knew where we were, fusions would be knocking on our door already. Someone else had to give us this. Someone who knows we exist."

Drew frowned. "Do we know what's on it?"

"Only one way to find out," Max said, walking over to Drew. Drew handed him the drive, and Max took it to the large computer screen, plugging it into the side. "If there's anything on it that could be detrimental to our systems, I'll be able to catch it before it can install itself."

I breathed a sigh of relief at that. If this were Arbiter Corp playing tricks on us, then the drive obviously would've contained something that could hack into the Resistance's databases. But, I also had to agree with Lionel – if Arbiter Corp were anything like Verdana, we would've been fusion food already, considering how much of a threat we were to their plans.

On the computer screen, a window popped up, showing multiple files with cryptic titles. Still, the files themselves didn't seem to be locked, as Max pulled up one of the programs easily, revealing what looked like the blueprints to an Arbiter Corp base in Johto. It was as if whoever had retrieved this information had retrieved it directly from the source – wherever that source was.

"Wow…" Max said, breathless. He looked at us. "It might take me a while to sort out all of this information, but we might have some grade-A stuff here." He looked back at the screen. "Whoever left this must be against the Arbiter Corporation as well. It's amazing how they got it, but this might be able to help us greatly if it can be validated."

I hummed. "Are you sure we don't have any ideas toward who might've left it?"

Dawn shifted in place. "Well, there was something laying right next to it." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. "There's no name on this, but there is some writing. Has to be code for something, though, because I have no clue what it means."

I took the letter from her.

My eyes widened, but I couldn't speak.

'_This is proof that you can still trust me.'_


	13. Memory and Humanity

**-Soledad-**

I didn't know how long I stood there, looking down at Lilycove. I was a few miles away from its gate, on top of a hill that was tall enough to give me a good view of the whole city. The building that served as the cover for the Hoenn Resistance's base was as clear as day for me – a glare amongst a big, dark landscape. Though that building was as dead as the skyscrapers that crumbled around it, I knew what was happening beneath it and who was there, and that made it the most important thing down there – a remnant from a canvas torn apart by this war.

Thunder rumbled from above.

I looked up. The black cloud that had been rolling in from the horizon had finally reached land. The smell of rain found its way inside my helmet. I breathed it in – a taste of innocence within a nightmare. It reminded me of the one thing I had noticed over the past five years.

No matter what happened – the fusions, the rise of the Arbiter Corporation, an entire world being thrown into hell, a family falling apart one by one – the rain never seemed to change. It never seemed to stop falling.

I reached into my pocket. It was empty. I really had given the USB flash drive to Drew, May, and the rest of the Hoenn Resistance – to the rest of people that were also fighting this war. Such a thing jeopardized my chance to take out the Arbiter Corporation by myself – to fully satiate my need for revenge, because I couldn't accomplish anything if someone else killed my targets before me.

But…I didn't care. I didn't care about revenge when I had dropped the flash drive by the secret door into the Resistance and left. I didn't care about revenge when I wrote that note – a note that I hoped May would understand and see as a reason to still trust me, to remember who I really was.

I looked at my hand, covered by my armored glove. Slowly, I clenched it into a fist.

Beneath this armor – beneath the emotionless skin of Artemis – there was a part of me that still hadn't changed. Maybe that's why I hadn't cared, dropping my need for revenge, so I could help the Resistance, so I could help Drew, so I could help May.

Maybe, I was still Soledad in some sense. Maybe there was a piece of me that, even with everything that'd been brought on by the fusions, would never change – would never forget.

I gazed up again.

Never change; never stop falling… like the rain.

A drop of water touched my visor. Another one joined it, then another. Within seconds, rain fell all around me. It fell onto the ground, it fell onto the pavement, it fell onto the trees, and with the growling of the thunder above, it created a cadence – a cadence no different than when it would play five, ten, fifteen years ago.

_Never change._

I took my helmet off. The rain ran down my face, trailing through my loose hair.

_Never stop falling._

I closed my eyes.

_Like the rain._

* * *

_I remember that day fifteen years ago – the day that wound up changing everything._

_It was raining then, like it was now. Olivine City, Johto was beneath a storm system that had rolled in from the ocean it bordered. The Grand Festival that had taken place earlier that day still commenced, though, and May…_

_May had been the winner._

_I remember the cheering from the crowd. That Johto Grand Festival had been only one of the many we had all competed in together during our journey as a team of four. Whoever won them no longer sparked the rivalry between us; instead, it was as if we were all watching a sibling achieve a victory she deserved. Harley, Drew, and I – we were all there as May accepted the trophy from the judges._

_Then…_

_Then Drew had announced that he was leaving – taking a break from coordinating for a reason he wouldn't explain._

_I can remember that moment the clearest of all, where we all stood at the bus stop, confused, but ready to say goodbye for when Drew boarded the bus to leave. _

_The hurt in May's eyes was as evident as daylight. She wanted to ask if anything was wrong – why Drew was leaving so suddenly – but she didn't say anything. Fifteen years ago, she was sixteen; a youthful girl dressed in those emerald-themed clothes she had first designed for her Johto journey. _

_Drew was the same age, with that purple jacket that had symbolized him just as much as his chartreuse-colored hair did. He still pushed his bangs out of his eyes back then, his hair short, not grown out like it was now. And, just like he had when he and May first met, he pulled a rose out of his jacket pocket, its stem clean of any thorns._

_He handed it to May, a weak smile on his face. She took it, their fingers brushing, her sapphire eyes dark, worried, and asking the questions she couldn't bring herself to speak. But, Drew only shook his head, tightened his hold on his umbrella and turned toward the silver bus that pulled up to the curb._

"_You'll keep in touch, right?" May asked, her voice low, to where I almost didn't hear it over the sound of the rain hitting the pavement. "You won't be gone long?"_

_Drew paused, and he met her eyes one last time._

"_Rivals forever," he said, with another weak smile. "Right?"_

_May hadn't seemed relieved by that, but she only nodded and watched him go. _

_We all watched him go, boarding the bus. From beside me, Harley reached out slightly, as if wanting to say something before Drew left – another attempt at finding out the real reason why Drew was leaving – but I cut him off with a hand to his shoulder. Back then, we were both twenty-one, and he was still dressed in that cacturne-themed outfit of his, with his long purple-colored hair and smooth face, which matched with the rest of his effeminate nature. He looked at me, his eyes crossing mine, glowing their metallic blue-green hue in the shadow the storm had cast over Olivine. My heart always skipped a beat whenever our eyes met, but I shook off the feeling when I heard the bus move._

_As the bus made its way down the road, taking Drew with it, May ran out from under the cover of the bus stop and onto the curb. The rain soaked her, but she didn't pay attention to it, her worried eyes focused on the back of the bus, Drew's rose still in her hand. Gently, she looked at the rose, where the falling rain dampened its petals, darkening their color._

_She sighed._

"_Rivals forever…" she said. "Right."_

* * *

Returning to reality, I opened my eyes. The greens of the grass and the trees from fifteen years ago morphed back into the dead wasteland all around me. But, the rain still fell – that cadence still played.

I reached deeper into my pocket. I exhaled slowly as I pulled out a small picture – a picture I always kept with me. I tented it with my hand, protecting it from the rain. It was a picture of May, Drew, Harley, and I taken directly after the events of a different Grand Festival.

Slowly, I brushed my finger across Harley's jaw.

Listening to the rain fall around me, I closed my eyes again.

* * *

_I remember how I was in love with Harley – feelings that I kept to myself. With how busy we were with coordinating, I didn't want to risk adding more stress to the situation, so I had remained quiet about my feelings for him for quite some time. When my heart had skipped a beat during Drew's departure, it was only one of the many times it had when Harley was around. He was my childhood friend, the one person I could talk to better than anyone else, and I had loved him even before May and Drew had come into the picture._

_I remember the day after Drew had left. We were still in Olivine, trying to figure out what to do from there. I had tried to call Drew multiple times, but he wouldn't answer, and despite that a part of me figured he was just busy in the midst of finding his way back home, the other part of me that saw him as my son worried as much as May did._

_Harley and I sat in the lobby of the city's main pokemon center. It was still storming outside, the rain hitting the windows, lightning flashing and growling. Harley's eyes were dark, focused on the floor._

"_Something wrong?" I asked._

"_Just worried about Drew."_

_I frowned. "Yeah, me too."_

_Harley and Drew hadn't exactly been the best of friends when they first met, but as time went on and the four of us became closer, Harley had grown to care about Drew's safety just as much as he cared about May's._

_Harley shifted in place. "May told me this morning that she might return to Petalburg now."_

_I swallowed hard and sighed. I felt it when Harley turned his eyes to me._

"_I was kind of expecting it," I said. "Do you think Drew really left to just 'take a break'?"_

"_I hope so," Harley muttered. "I mean, if it was something serious, he least would've told May, right?"_

"_I guess…"_

_A goofy grin crossed Harley's face. "So that explains it! Whatever this hiatus means, I doubt it'll last long. We'll all be back together before you know it!" He stretched and leaned back into the sofa. "Who knows? Maybe I'll take a vacation, too. Return to Slateport for a while. You can visit your folks in Pewter, Sol."_

_My heart had skipped another beat at that – but not out of affection. The idea of being away from Harley hurt. I opened my mouth to say something, but, for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to protest to his idea, as if doing so would draw attention to the matter; attention I didn't want right now._

_Still, Harley noticed my discomfort. My hand that rested on my thigh was engulfed in warmth, and I looked up to see Harley had leaned forward and covered my hand with his own. I met his eyes, deep and caring._

"_Is something else bothering you, Sol?"_

_I could've leaned in right then and there. I could've kissed him. But, I didn't. I shook my head and stood up._

"_Just exhausted," I said. "Going to go get some sleep."_

"_Oh…okay."_

_I turned away from him. Maybe it was the possibility that Drew left because something was wrong – and that this hiatus could turn into something more. Maybe it was the idea that "the coordinating family of four" was breaking up, without a solid reason. Maybe it was the fact that I was strong enough to handle anything, but not my own emotions. _

_Whatever the case was, I knew I wasn't going to get much sleep that night._

* * *

I slipped the photo back into my pocket and looked toward Lilycove. With the rain falling on it, obscuring it away behind a watery mist, it almost didn't seem damaged – like this war had never happened, like nothing had changed.

I closed my eyes again.

* * *

_I remember how I ran._

_A week after Drew had left, May had already headed back to Petalburg, and Harley was set to leave for Slateport that afternoon. He had said goodbye the previous night, where, again, I couldn't bring myself to say anything other than a promise that we would see each other soon, no matter whether this "hiatus" was meant to be short or long. He had given me a weak smile that reminded me of Drew's, as if he had hoped there'd been more of something. I hadn't thought of what that something was._

_I had just let him go._

_But that day when Harley was going to leave, I ran out of my hotel room as fast as I could, wondering what the hell I'd been thinking._

_I made it to the bus stop ten minutes before Harley's bus would've arrived. It was still raining, but the only thing I focused on was Harley, who stared at me with worried eyes. He ran over to me and pulled me into his warm arms._

"_Soledad! What's wrong?"_

_I looked up at him. We crossed eyes. Again, I couldn't speak, no matter how hard I tried._

_So, I just did what my heart wanted me to do._

_I kissed him._

_It wasn't long. It wasn't passionate. I couldn't feel him reciprocating, but, at that moment, I didn't care._

_I pulled away and met his eyes._

_His eyes were dark, but not dark with anger. They were dark with something else. They were also focused on me and only me. My heart skipped a beat. When the bus pulled up to the curb, Harley didn't seem to notice, still staring at me. I opened my mouth to point it out, but he brought his finger to my lips. Then, he cupped my chin, pulled me in, and kissed me with the emotion the previous kiss lacked._

_When we broke apart, Harley leaned his forehead against mine._

"_Soledad, I-"_

_This time, I was the one who cut him off, my finger against his lips. I smiled, took his hand in mine, and led him away from the bus stop._

_He followed without question._

* * *

The rain was still strong when I opened my eyes.

I got up, put my helmet back on, and turned away from Lilycove. I had to keep moving, though I wasn't sure where I could go from here. It would take a while to analyze the information stored into my helmet's database, but doing it so close to a Resistance base probably wasn't a good idea.

I moved forward, still listening to the rain.

* * *

_I remember it hadn't taken Harley and I long to reach my hotel room, escaping the cold, rainy weather outside._

_Within minutes of arrival, though, I had him pinned against the wall, kissing him feverishly. His feminine touch felt good as it glided across my skin, undoing buttons, but the way he growled hungrily into my mouth when my own hand brushed his navel, exposed through the design of his cacturne outfit, I felt a cold flash shoot down my spine. This sense of masculinity in him was a sense only I could bring out – and that filled me with satisfaction._

_When our shirts were off, he kissed me until I couldn't stand anymore. Then, he carried me to the bed, and we finally fed the years of sexual tension between us. His lips caressed my skin, his breath hot, and I arched into him as his soft touch trailed down my chest. In the midst of it, we crossed eyes, stopping; breathing hard, sweat trailing down our skins. Like a wolf, his eyes once again focused on me and only me, glowing in the dark room._

_Gently, he lowered his forehead against mine._

_"I love you," he whispered._

_I smiled._

_"I love you, too."_

* * *

Soon, the rain died down. The storm moved on, heading toward the western side of Hoenn. I released Charizard, who growled at the sight of a rain puddle before him, but hummed thoughtfully when he realized that the rain itself wasn't around to threaten the flame at the tip of his tail.

I climbed onto his back. "Fly," I said.

Charizard craned his neck to look at me. His eyes glowed with confusion – an obvious question of "Where?"

I shook my head. "Just…fly."

Charizard grunted. His brows furrowed in thought.

Then, he took off.

* * *

_I remember that, for four years, Harley and I maintained a healthy relationship. Even with how intimate we were, he was always paranoid of making an idiot out of himself on our dates. I would laugh and tell him everything was all right. After all, the dorky nature he had when he was around people he liked was one of the reasons I fell in love with him. He proposed to me at the end of our fourth year together. The wedding was small and quiet – even with the reporters from all those coordinating magazines knocking on the church doors._

_Five years after that, we got the letter - the invitation to Enfer City._

* * *

I opened my eyes. I had dozed off, and Charizard was heading for ground. I wondered where he'd taken me.

When I saw the lights of the nearby survivor sanctuary and the ongoing ocean to my side, I knew where I was. I jumped down from Charizard's back and looked at him. He shrugged sheepishly. The tone in my voice had probably implied that I wanted to come to Dewford Island, even if I hadn't been sure in the first place where I wanted to go.

In the distance, I could see the storm from before. It flashed with lightning, a dark mist falling from beneath it. Thousands and thousands of rain drops falling together.

* * *

_"Soledad," Harley had said. "Why'd you pull me out here?"_

_I remembered how I sighed, shutting the door to the abandoned bookstore May, Drew, Lionel, Harley, and I were using as sanctuary for the night. The attack on Enfer City had devastated us all; turning what we thought would be a simple reunion into some nightmare. It had only been hours since we had left the Enfer City Hospital, heading for the Citadel after the doctor had finished patching up Harley's injuries. May and the others were asleep inside, and though I was supposed to be on guard duty, I had to take the time to tell Harley of what else I had learned while we had been at that hospital._

"_Harley," I said, "I…I checked something while the doctor was healing your injuries."_

_Harley frowned. "What? Is something wrong, Sol?"_

_I shook my head. "No, nothing's wrong. But, I…uh…"_

_I debated with myself whether that moment was good enough to tell him. But, considering the situation we were all in – the situation Harley had been in – any sense of light was worth it._

_I met his eyes._

"_I'm pregnant."_

_Harley froze. He blinked, his mouth opening and closing._

"_Pregnant?" he finally said, breathless. "Really?"_

"_Yeah."_

_Harley grinned. "I'm gonna be a dad?" he asked._

_I smiled._

"_Yeah."_

_He pulled me into his arms and kissed me. "I'm gonna be a dad!" he said. "I'm gonna be a dad!"_

_I laughed, laying my head against his chest. "Should we tell May and the others?"_

_Harley thought for a moment. Then, he smirked. "Nah. Let's keep it a secret for now. Once we get out of Enfer City, it'll be the first piece of good news they'll hear."_

_I leaned in to kiss him again._

"_As soon as we're all out of Enfer City," I said. "We'll tell them, together."_

_Harley smiled softly._

"_I wouldn't want it any other way, Sol."_

* * *

I took off my helmet.

When this war began, every sense of the past had been forgotten beneath the changes of everything else. There were some things, though, that didn't change.

The rain definitely was one of them. As if every rain drop was a piece of time – a second, a minute, a day, a month, a year, a life – it continued to flow, never ending, never stopping, always falling. Clocks made of water, all holding memories.

Even if the world were crumbling, the rain would still find a way to fall.

I looked back toward the sanctuary. From its gate, a small figure stepped out – a five-year-old boy, with mulberry-colored hair and forest green eyes. He seemed to notice me, as a large grin crossed his face, and he ran toward me.

"Mommy!"

I smiled as I watched him, my eyes growing wet.

Just like with the thousands of raindrops that had fallen from the storm, all those memories – all those pieces of time – came back to me.

I dropped my helmet, kneeled down, and wrapped my arms around Malcolm when he reached me.

"I missed you, Mommy," Malcolm said, his head on my shoulder.

My body shook. Malcolm pulled away, concern in his eyes.

"Mommy?" he asked, meeting my eyes. "Why are you crying?"

I looked up at him, tears flowing down my face – tears that hadn't fallen for five years – and I only embraced him again.


	14. Shark In the Water

**-May-**

I gently knocked on the door into the base's computer room. Though it was already ajar, I didn't want to make too much noise. My voice low, I called out, "Max?"

Max didn't answer. I could hear the running of computers and see the glow of monitors, which bathed the back of the door in a soft, blue light. I pushed the door open and slipped inside.

The sight of multiple tables covered with machines didn't surprise me. If Max was the hacker and data collector of the Hoenn Resistance, then he probably needed as many tools as he could get. I imagined him constantly switching his eyes between computer screens, fingers typing continuously, brows furrowed with determination.

Regarding a situation such as sorting and validating the information we had found on that USB drive earlier, an image of Max hibernating in this room also came to me. I hadn't seen him come out of this room at all since he took the USB drive and "got to work". Hours had passed, with a thunderstorm having crossed over Lilycove a little while back. It was midnight now, according to the clock in the living room, and with everyone getting ready for bed, I thought I'd try to convince my brother to pack it up for the night.

In front of a large, lit monitor, a chair stood perfectly still. Walking closer, I saw a figure sitting in it, hunched over toward the desk. His arms were folded right below the computer's keyboard to cushion his head, while his shoulders slowly rose and fell to the rhythm of sleep.

"He's probably the busiest out of all of us."

I turned toward the voice and saw Drew standing in the doorway, a blanket in his arms. He made his way over to Max, unfolding the blanket and laying it over him.

I removed Max's glasses and put them on the desk. Looking back at the monitor, I knew Drew was right – multiple windows were open across the screen, each filled with files whose titles probably had something to do with the information on the USB drive. Max had fallen asleep in the midst of working. The image of him typing nonstop faded away beneath the sight of him sleeping peacefully, dreaming of a time probably better than the one we were in now. At least, I hoped he was. Nonetheless, I didn't disturb him. If I woke him up to move him to his bed, then he would just realize he'd fallen asleep, brush me off, and keep working until fatigue took over again.

I turned off the monitor to give Max some sense of silence. Then, I brushed my fingers through his hair and kissed his forehead.

"Are you coming to bed yourself?" Drew asked.

I met his eyes. "In a little bit."

He nodded, kissed me, and departed. After whispering a "Good night" to Max, I followed, closing the door behind me.

* * *

A few minutes later, I was alone in the base's living room. Drew had gone to bed, and since I didn't see Paul, Lionel, or Dawn, I assumed they had, too. I wasn't that tired at the moment, because thoughts about the USB drive flashed through my head. Though it didn't show, I was probably thinking about it just as much as Max had.

I knew that the note that was left by the drive when Dawn found it was from Soledad. So, it was obvious that the drive was from Soledad as well. But, she had become Artemis because of Harley's death and the need to protect Malcolm, so why would she do something like this if she wanted to be forgotten by the rest of us? Besides, she wanted revenge, and giving us the same information she knew offered us a spot on the winning stand before she could even cross the finish line.

'_This is proof that you can still trust me.'_

And…maybe it was proof that she was still Soledad, too.

I sighed. I wanted to tell Drew that Soledad was alive, but if I did that, I would have to tell him that she was Artemis – an assassin he had undoubtedly heard of. What was worse: Thinking your friend was dead, or finding out that she was alive – and on the other team?

The kitchen light flashing on broke me from my trance, glaring out of the corner of my eye from down the hall. I pushed my thoughts away and walked toward it. Dawn came into view, making her way around the kitchen, humming a happy tune as she grabbed a highball glass from a shelf and placed it on the granite countertop.

She caught my eyes.

"Oh, May," she said, blinking, "I thought you went to bed."

"I thought you did, too."

Dawn shrugged. "Nah. I usually stay up late. I enjoy the peace and quiet, relaxing on the couch, reading a romance novel or two. During times like these, it's rare when you can, you know, 'slow down,' definitely when you're a part of this business."

I looked over my shoulder, thinking of Max. "I can imagine…"

"Well," Dawn said, "you're here. Want a drink?"

I smiled. "Why not?"

Dawn grinned and grabbed another highball glass from the shelf. "You a gin and tonic kind of girl?"

"Definitely."

She laughed. "That's what I like to hear."

As she made the drinks, fetching the gin and tonic water from one of the bottom cabinets, I remembered the battle we shared during the Wallace Cup in Sinnoh all those years ago. She had won the match, and I had made my way back to Johto with a smile on my face anyway, just glad that a person with such determination and dedication had achieved the victory she deserved.

"So," Dawn said, adding a lemon wedge to each glass – the finishing touch, "I take it you and Drew settled your differences earlier? Your relationship is back on track?"

"Yeah, we talked about it."

Dawn shook her head, smiling with amusement. She handed me one of the glasses, the ice cubes inside hitting together from the movement. "Just talked? Then why did you both disappear into his room for hours on end?"

I felt the blood rush to my face. "Uh-"

Dawn laughed again. "Don't worry about it. I would've been surprised if you guys hadn't done anything, considering how much Drew has missed you all these years."

"We weren't…loud, were we?"

"No. Though this base was built to echo sound in some places – a nice thing to have in case a fusion breaks or sneaks its way in – the rooms were made with privacy in mind."

I breathed a sigh of relief, taking a sip of my drink. The taste of alcohol lingered on my tongue. "That's nice to know."

Dawn gestured toward a table on the other side of the kitchen. I nodded, and we both took seats across from each other.

"We never kept much contact after the Wallace Cup," I said. "Apart from now, how did your coordinating career go?"

"It went pretty well. After the Sinnoh League back when I was traveling with Ash, I stayed behind in Sinnoh while he moved on, and I entered my pokemon into a few different gigs. I traveled around some more, won a few Grand Festivals, made some more friends and enemies, and pretty much got my name out there."

"Then, were you…were you invited to Enfer City?"

Dawn's eyes darkened. "Yeah, I was. I attended it with Zoey and Kenny – two rivals and friends of mine. I guess you and I didn't see each other down there. But…" She leaned back in her chair. "When the attack happened, Zoey, Kenny, and I managed to get out shortly after the call for the city's evacuation, and for a while we all believed that what happened was just the result of some power-hungry organization lusting for terror. We never thought that the attack might've come from the inside – and that it would lead to this hellhole we've all been thrown into."

"Are Zoey and Kenny okay?" I asked. I remembered facing Zoey during the Wallace Cup.

"They're both fine. They're part of the Sinnoh Resistance."

I hummed thoughtfully. "What about Paul?"

"What about him?"

"Well, you both seem to know each other. Is he a friend, too?"

Dawn let out an awkward cough. "You could say that. Paul was a regular pokemon trainer, and he was Ash's rival during his travels through Sinnoh. They both learned from one another and all that. You know, the usual stuff that happens during a rivalry."

I arched a brow. "Was Paul always such a…uh…"

"Asshole?"

I blinked. "Yeah."

Dawn waved it off with her hand. "Yes, he was, and he still is. He was like that when Ash and I first met him. He was callous with his pokemon and callous with everyone else. It stems from the fact that his brother lost a match to the Frontier Brain, Brandon, a long time ago, which made Paul develop a philosophy that strength was everything in a pokemon battle. Unfortunately, it also affected who he was as a person, too, though he did loosen up a little after the Sinnoh League when Ash defeated him."

"He doesn't seem that 'loosened up' to me."

"There are new reasons for his callousness now…"

I looked up. "Like?"

"The obvious thing, for starters," Dawn said, "which is the fusion war. The next thing is…his brother."

"His brother?"

Dawn nodded, frowning. "Reggie and Paul might have had their differences, but they still loved one another. During the past five years, Sinnoh was hit with the fusions just as much as the other regions. Reggie was killed in the onslaught."

"My Arceus…"

"Reggie…was Paul's motivation to join the Resistance, just as you were for Drew. Yeah, Paul may not be the nicest guy around, but I can't expect him to start baking cookies for the homeless at a time like this."

I finished my drink. "I understand." I looked up at her, cracking a small smile. "You sound like you really care about him."

Snorting, Dawn rolled her eyes. "You wouldn't be the first to make that assumption. I do care about him, yes. I was stuck with him during the majority of Sinnoh's destruction by the fusions, and we both share our own sense of tragedy in all of this. Misery loves company, as they say."

I flat-out grinned. "You're not specifying."

"Alright, maybe a physical attraction is there…"

"Are you sure Paul feels it, too?"

"Please. Like I haven't caught him staring at my ass on different occasions. Of course, when I point it out, he denies it, but I don't expect any different from him in that department, either."

"Do you love him?"

Dawn swallowed. She looked down at her drink, swishing the ice cubes around. "I…I don't know. If I said I didn't have any feelings for him, I'd be lying. I don't know if these feelings are strong enough to justify screaming from the rooftops that I'm definitely in love with him, though."

"How do you think he feels about you?"

"It's hard to figure out what Paul thinks sometimes. He locked everyone out during Ash's travel through Sinnoh, and with Reggie's death and all, I'm really the only person that can open him up now. A part of me…thinks that means something."

I smiled. "I'm sure it does."

Dawn met my eyes. She shook her head, stood up, and reached for my empty glass.

"I hope it does."

* * *

I said goodnight to Dawn an hour later, watching her disappear behind the door into her room. Then, I made my way toward Drew's room, slipping inside, trying not to make too much noise as I maneuvered my way through the pitch-black space. I thanked Arceus for my (mildly) strong alcohol tolerance level; otherwise, I probably would've tripped over myself already.

When I felt the soft padding of the bed, I climbed into it. Drew's arm wrapped around me. I smiled, moving closer to him, feeling the warmth of his skin as I laid my head against his bare chest.

I closed my eyes, drifting away to the sound of his breathing.


	15. Worlds Away

**-Soledad-**

When my eyes opened, I didn't expect to see light blue walls all around me, covered in paper cuttings depicting various pokemon and people, all of which had been obviously drawn with crayons. The feeling of surprised lingered, and, for a split second, a cold sensation washed over my stomach. I wondered if an enemy had captured me and stuck me in some room that represented the innocent past, trying to torment me with whatever memories it would resurrect.

After all, when I usually woke up, I was surrounded by death and decay. I would be hidden away in the back compartments of a military truck left behind by terrified soldiers, or leaning against the blood-smeared walls of an abandoned grocery store in the middle of a city's ruins. Wherever I woke up, it would never be in a place as nice as this.

I heard a groan to my side, close enough to where it might as well have been right up against my ear. I looked down, the pillow behind my head cushioning my sore neck, and I saw a patch of mulberry-colored hair tilt toward me. Its owner yawned before falling back asleep, snuggled up to my side with his cheek pressed against the skin beside my collarbone.

I smiled and softly ran my fingers through Malcolm's hair. I remembered where I was and why I was there. After the events of last night, Malcolm had led me to Cary's house, where we both snuck past her room as she slept, and climbed into the bed in his room. There, I had sung him to sleep, but, unable to get him to let go of my arm, I brushed the importance of time away and fell asleep next to him.

It was nice, not having to worry about finding a resting spot that wasn't infested with fusions. It was nice to have a place that was actually comfortable.

It was nice to be with Malcolm again.

Light streamed in through the window above the bed, its glow cut into fragments from the segmented blinds. I looked at the nightstand, where a digital clock sat. It flashed with "8 AM", and I knew that the light that bled in probably wasn't sunlight. Sunlight was scarce these days, but, nonetheless, the sun's attempt to get past the apocalyptic storm clouds above was evident.

Beside the digital clock, I saw my face reflected in the tinted visor of my helmet.

I frowned. Even with the memories that I had gathered last night and the need to be with Malcolm, I hadn't let the _Artemis _suit out of my sight. The armor was folded neatly, taking up most of the space on the nightstand, with the helmet sitting on top. My boots and weapons were hidden away behind the nightstand, so Malcolm couldn't get to them in case he had woken up first.

I stared into the helmet. I saw the light bruises across my jaw – evidence of my fight with Alistair. It was as if I was looking directly into a mirror, a mirror that reminded me of what I'd become, a mirror reminding me of how much I relied upon it to find purpose in this torn up world. I wanted to get up, take the helmet, and throw it as hard as I could. Shatter it – shatter that mirror – and break everything it represented, every connection it had formed with me, and every reason why I needed it.

But, I couldn't. Not now. As much as I wished I didn't let it represent me, I did. As much as I wished I didn't have a connection to it, I did. As much as I wished I didn't have a reason to need it, I did.

I looked at the ceiling, swallowing the lump that had formed in my throat.

What would Harley think of me, if he were still alive? I had convinced myself that I was doing this to protect Malcolm, and to satiate my need for revenge – the pain inflicted upon me when the fusions took everything away, including Harley. I could hear his voice, smell him, imagine him; he filled my senses, as if he were in the room, right beside me, looking down at me with those wolf-like eyes, their metallic blue-green hue flashing with emotions I couldn't describe. Disappointment? Pride? What would he feel toward Artemis Soledad? Would he want her, or would he want Soledad Davidson back?

I didn't know. I had a hard enough time trying to figure out which one I really was.

"Mommy?"

I looked down and met Malcolm's eyes. They were still dark with grogginess. I smiled as I brushed my thumb along his cheek. He smiled back.

"Good morning," he said.

"Morning, Mal."

Malcolm nuzzled the bottom of my chin with his head. His fingers brushed my bangs, trailing down my long hair, tucked along my back. "You look pretty, Mommy. Why do you have to wear that big suit so much?"

I sighed. On the nightstand, my helmet stared at us, empty, ghost-like, like a monster with no meaning for existence. In the pit of my mind, though, this monster then smirked. It broke out into laughter – a sinister laugh – as its semblance of loneliness shattered, a simple façade that hid away its true feelings.

It knew why it existed. It knew that I knew.

When I led Malcolm out of the room, I looked back at my helmet. It stared at me silently, but even when I shut the door and walked down the hall, I felt that monster's laughter, still echoing through me.

* * *

Cary wasn't too surprised when she saw me emerge into the kitchen with Malcolm. True, she did back into the countertop a bit, her hand over her heart, probably thinking that I had died in combat and that the figure following Malcolm around was my ghost. But, it could've been worse. She could've whacked me over the head with her frying pan, thinking I was an imposter.

I described the situation over breakfast, where I helped Cary set the table. Malcolm immediately dug into a plate of pancakes as soon as Cary put it in front of him, while I helped myself to some toast. Cary joined us seconds later, her eyes still bright with the shock of seeing me here.

"You sure this isn't too dangerous for your…" Cary hesitated. "Secrecy?"

I shook my head. "I took off the suit before Malcolm led me into town. To guards, I just looked like a passerby who was out past curfew."

"Still, you know what would've happened if they saw you, or at least a glimpse of the suit, right?"

"They would've recognized me as Artemis, yeah. Luckily, Malcolm was able to run the suit into the house before he came back to escort me."

Malcolm grinned – obvious pride toward the successful work he'd done.

Cary's expression reflected the opposite. "I don't agree that such a thing is a good chore for a young boy, hauling the costume of a renowned assassin."

My lips twitched. I deserved that blow. "I know, but it would've been more dangerous to leave it outside, where someone else could've stumbled upon it."

"Hn." Cary sipped her coffee, her eyes glued to me. The shock from my presence had faded away; her irises were now dark with other emotions I couldn't name. I felt like a criminal, facing a court to receive the verdict for the things I've done. Considering the situation, the real case wasn't far from that example. "Well," Cary said, short and simple, "how long do you plan on staying?"

I knew Cary wasn't proud of my alter ego, just like May and Ratchet hadn't been. But, she had offered to watch over Malcolm because she knew I needed help, reflecting how Ratchet continued to provide weapons and upgrades to my suit, and why there hadn't been any news that Hoenn Resistance member Drew Trandafir was looking for me, since May obviously hadn't told him anything. They all helped, because they knew I needed it, whether it was against their own morals or not.

"Not long," I said, almost regretting that I had to say such words in front of Malcolm. "I plan on leaving tonight."

"What?" Malcolm looked up from his plate. "You're leaving? Already?"

"I'm sorry, Mal," I said. "But I'll be back, and sooner than you think."

Malcolm sighed. My heart ached at the sight; while my brain praised me for remembering the things I still had to do out there.

"Let's not waste any time you have with your mother, then, Mal," Cary said, smiling a sheepish, yet assuring, smile.

Malcolm nodded. "Okay…" He got up, put his empty plate into the sink, and ran into the living room. Seconds later, he was back, and he placed a small stack of papers in front of me.

I blinked.

"I want to show Mommy my drawings!" Malcolm said, his eyes bright with glee.

Cary's gaze flashed with recognition. "Oh, yes. Mal's quite the artist. I'll say that if he doesn't grow up to follow in your coordinating footsteps, then it's obvious he'll be a pokemon sketcher for sure."

It was ironic, that being surrounded by dark times didn't sway a lot of people from talking about the future as if it was still intact. Sure enough, if the fusion fleets didn't lighten up, or they won the war in the end, there would be no coordinating in the years ahead. There would also be no more "civil" pokemon to sketch.

But, I mirrored Cary's optimistic smile and looked at the drawings. They were done in crayon, various marks straying outside the lines in what mimicked a child's coloring technique. I chuckled at the innocence of it all.

Cary chuckled as well. "Mal likes to draw a lot of bad guys for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Squirtles to fight."

"Yeah!" Malcolm said. He pointed at one picture I picked up, which depicted an infernape in sinister-looking armor. "That's Commander Flamethrower! He traps the Ninja Squirtles in a volcano and then tries to make it blow up! But the Squirtles get out in time and they beat him!"

As if on queue, I flipped to the next drawing, which depicted "Commander Flamethrower" battling the Ninja Squirtles – and clearly losing.

"He's always making up his own episodes," Cary said, getting up to refill her coffee mug.

I glanced at Malcolm, seeing the glow of excitement in his eyes. He reminded me of his father in so many ways. It almost hurt to look at him.

I flipped to the next drawing. It depicted what I assumed would be another enemy for the Ninja Squirtles. This one was…eerie, though. It was a tall, bald man, with pale flesh and thin arms that reached toward the viewer menacingly. His fingers were long, too, pointed at the ends, resembling claws. He was naked, though Malcolm had drawn him not showing anything between the legs. Long, white tentacles burst from his back, motioned with lines to be whipping around behind him. His face was blank – as in, he didn't have one. There were only indentations on the head where the eyes, nose, and mouth would've been.

"Mal," I said, "what's this bad guy called?"

Malcolm looked at the picture. "That's Mr. Lean."

"Mr. ...Lean?"

"Yeah! He tries to sneak up on the Ninja Squirtles, but they're too quick for him! Then – POW! Kick! Punch! They beat him! He teams up with Commander Flamethrower in one episode!"

"Oh." I looked back at the picture.

Cary sat down across from me, a new steaming mug of coffee in her hands. "Mal said he based Mr. Lean on someone he saw outside." She rolled her eyes. "And even with the times I told him that Broderick shouldn't be a source of inspiration for his fictional bad guys."

"Broderick?" I asked.

"He's a nice guy that lives down the street. He looks like he would play for a basketball team, but he's been having an issue with hair loss that Malcolm is always making fun of."

Malcolm glared. "Mr. Lean wasn't inspired by Broderick!"

"Malcolm, what did I tell you about lying?"

Malcolm pouted. "But I'm telling the truth!"

"Mal," I said, my tone warning, though I wasn't sure I understood the story enough to justify scolding Malcolm.

"Fine." Malcolm snorted. Then, he looked at me, his smile returning. "You can keep a picture, Mommy, so you'll always remember me!"

My eyes grew wet at the thought. I held it back, though, and nodded, mimicking his smile. "I'll keep the Mr. Lean picture," I said, "just so Cary can stop yelling at you about it."

Cary rolled her eyes again.

Malcolm laughed and nodded with agreement.

* * *

It was six in the evening when I decided to leave. After taking a shower and eating something quick for dinner, I approached the back door, dressed in the upper and lower pieces of the _Artemis _suit, my rifle hooked across my back and my handgun at my side. I held the helmet in my hands. I originally wanted to wait until I was outside the town gate before I put on the suit, but I needed the night vision from my helmet to see any guards before they could see me. If you saw someone leave a safety zone without any obvious reason to, you're going to wonder why, and it was wiser to just gear up here, because I had a better chance of leaving quietly with the right tools than I would if I just walked out looking like an "innocent" pedestrian – and without a reasonable alibi to go with it.

I looked into the helmet's visor, seeing my face reflected in it. My hair was still down, my bangs in my eyes, though that barely obscured away that monster, which reared its ugly head at me, beckoning me with silent snarls to put on the helmet so it could reign again.

Forcing my eyes away, I looked at Malcolm, his gaze glossy with tears. I kneeled down to level myself with him, putting my helmet on the floor and grabbing his shoulders.

"I'll be back soon," I said. "I promise."

"You don't have to go, Mommy…"

I sighed. "I do, Mal. I have a lot of things I have to do."

"Like what?"

"You wouldn't understand now." I brushed his hair behind his ear. "But, when you're all grown up and this is all over, I'll tell you everything." I smiled. "And I'll teach you how to coordinate, or draw – whichever one you want to do. You just have to stay here, keep Cary company, and be strong. Can you do that?"

Malcolm nodded.

I embraced him. When I pulled back, I kissed his forehead and looked into his eyes. I saw so much in those eyes. I saw love, I saw passion, and I saw strength. I saw Harley, still alive – still thriving in his son's eyes.

"You're my brave boy," I whispered.

With that, I grabbed my helmet, stood up, and waved at Cary, who nodded from the kitchen.

"Do you still have the picture I gave you?" Malcolm asked.

I tapped at the pocket on my belt, where the picture of "Mr. Lean" was stashed away. "Sure do, and I'll always have it."

After tying my hair up, I put my helmet on, watching as the sensors came to life, flashing across the inside of my visor. In the pit of my mind, that monster purred, satisfied, dragging its claws along the mirror that reflected Soledad Davidson. It left the image of Artemis Soledad perfectly intact, though.

This_ is who you are now_, it hissed.

I slipped out the back door and into the night, that monster's laugh echoing through me once again.


	16. Kill the Messenger

**-May-**

"Alright..." Max said, glancing up at the large monitor he had produced from the wall.

He held a small remote in his hand, and, with one click, he was able to maneuver through the various icons on the desktop as if it was a cursor. He looked at all of us, as if making sure we were still awake, since he was the one who had woken us up and told us to meet in the living room. It had been dawn then, but even with that I doubted any of us felt tired. If anything, I felt restless. Max had finally sorted through the information stored on the USB flash drive found outside of the base.

"The information on the drive," he said, opening up a file on the screen with a click of his remote, talking with a firm tone that made me feel like a soldier at a debriefing, "it's extraordinary." He flashed a grin, breaking that pattern of seriousness, though seconds later he spoke like a war general again. "It didn't only have information about the Arbiter Corporation on it, but also about the fusions. It had reports about how they worked, information we never knew about."

He clicked his remote. A diagram appeared on the screen, portraying what looked like satellite dishes. Large satellite dishes, matching the height of skyscrapers. There were three of them, and an animation showed them sending out signals to a silhouetted figure. With one look at the figure, I knew it was Kruismara, the large nidoking-like shape burned into my memories from my time spent in Enfer.

"To start things off," Max said, "one of the things we've all been wondering about was how Verdana had been able to control Kruismara during the Enfer City incident. We already know that when May and Drew had encountered her, she had taken the form of a fusion, which had given her the ability to 'communicate' with other fusions. Before this, it was implied that if Verdana had encountered any of her fusions, they would've attacked her, seeing her as regular prey. However, Verdana was somehow able to command Kruismara and tell him what to do, not only using him to protect her from her own fusion army, but to also send orders to the fusion army, even if members of said army were miles apart."

Paul shifted from beside me. "Didn't researchers looking into this part already suggest that there might have been a telepathic link involved?"

"That was a reasonable theory to how the fusions could communicate with one another. But it still didn't explain how Verdana was able to control Kruismara before she became part fusion." He walked over to the screen, pointing directly at the satellite dishes. "Well, now we have an answer."

"Those dishes?" Dawn asked, brow raised.

"Yes. These dishes send out signals, reaching electronic devices installed into Kruismara's brain when he was created. Through these signals, anyone with control over these dishes can make Kruismara do whatever they want him to do. When Enfer City was built, three of these dishes were stored beneath Enfer City, and Verdana was able to control him with the use of them. Not only that" - Max gestured at Kruismara, showing how the signals also circled him, as if forming some kind of shield - "but they protected him, forming an invisible shield around his body. Fusions are tough, that's for sure, but, that said, it was weird how Kruismara was able to take so many hits at one time and not even falter. These dishes were the cause, decreasing the damage done to him by physical and special attacks. This would explain how Kruismara survived Enfer's detonation."

I looked up at the diagram. "When Enfer City was destroyed, though, surely those dishes would've been, too. How has Arbiter Corp regained control of Kruismara?"

Max met my eyes. "Three of those dishes, with the same technology and function, were built here on the surface as well. After Enfer's destruction, Kruismara went into hibernation for six months under the ocean to recover from the incident. When he awoke and rose on the shores of Lilycove, these other three dishes were turned on, giving back the control lost when the dishes down in Enfer City were destroyed in its detonation."

He clicked a button on his remote. The screen changed, showing 3D models of the dishes in different surroundings.

"The three dishes on the surface," Max said, "are the only things that are allowing Arbiter Corp to control Kruismara, which, in return, allows them to control the fusion fleets. They are also the only things that are preventing Kruismara from being destroyed. These dishes, listed under the code names of 'Emerald Harbor,' 'Odysseus,' and 'At Hell's End,' are located in three different areas around the world. I'm still figuring out the exact coordinates, but I think these dishes are our key to winning this war."

"How so?" Drew asked, arms crossed.

"Though there are three dishes, only one is needed to control Kruismara. The other two mostly provide that protection that makes him invincible. If we can detonate two of these dishes and then take control of the last one, we can destroy Kruismara."

Dawn hummed. "Kruismara is big, yeah, but the fusion fleets are even bigger. Even if we take down Kruismara, how is that going to stop the rest of the fusions?"

"If we leave more than one dish standing, it'll provide too much ground for Arbiter Corp to fight back and regain control. We can't take that chance, definitely if we make a move this big. So, the idea of using Kruismara as an unbeatable weapon is out of the question. But..." Max smirked. "This is where the information I found on this drive gets really interesting."

He turned back to the screen, pulling up an image of a fusion. The signals from the dishes, still reaching Kruismara at one side of the screen, bounced off Kruismara and touched the fusion, as if it was some sort of leash.

"The fusions," Max said, "run on a hivemind, with Kruismara at the top."

I blinked. "A hivemind?"

"Yes. That's how Kruismara is able to tell the fusions what to do, even if they're miles apart. Not only this, but fusions rely on this hivemind to maintain order in their own units. The Chimera Virus is deadly and brutal, we all know that, but it's even more brutal than we expected. Without this hivemind – without this telepathic sense of order that stems from Kruismara – the fusions would turn on each other."

Lionel swallowed. "Are you saying that without this hivemind complex, the fusions would eat each other?"

"Basically. It was an unfortunate consequence of making such powerful, yet emotionless, hunters, which is why Verdana worked so hard on the idea of making Kruismara invincible. Without a head to the Hivemind, there would be anarchy amongst the fusion fleets."

"We take out Kruismara," Drew said, "the rest of the fusions would destroy themselves."

"Pretty much."

"Okay," Paul said, "we got that out there, but what about Arbiter Corp? Anything on them in particular?"

Max looked at the screen. He clicked a button on his remote. Six pictures came up, profiles listed underneath them. "Arbiter Corp," he said, "is run by a council of six leaders. Well, five now, since Verdana" - he gestured at the top picture, where Katherine Verdana smiled a sickening smile - "is dead. The still remaining five leaders of the corporation are Jericho Karvás, Alistair Donahue, Elena Silvermen, Ada Shard, and Mathias Cruse."

I looked at the pictures. It was weird, how they appeared so normal in those pictures, as if simply posing for the family photo albums or the yearly holiday cards. You would never have thought that they were the heads of an organization hell-bent on remodeling the world in favor of fear, making monsters out of anything they could touch and slaughtering anyone who got in their way.

Jericho. I felt as if he was looking right at me, with those red eyes and that sadistic grin on his face, as he stood over me, my blood on his hands.

"May?"

I shook my head. "Huh, what?"

Drew frowned. "You okay?"

"Yeah," I said, putting a hand to my forehead. "This is just a lot of info to take in at one time."

"And there's more," Max said, pointing back at the screen. "There are reports on this drive, naming some kind of side experiment that Arbiter Corp is trying out. It's called the Hybrid Phase."

"Hybrid Phase?" I repeated.

Max nodded. "If Verdana had control over the fusions with the use of the dishes and Kruismara, then it is strange why she would still think that she needed to have the Chimera Virus within her – become a part of the actual Hivemind – to be able to control her fusion armies." He looked at the screen. "It's because she eventually wanted to get rid of Kruismara herself, taking her place as head of the Hivemind."

"Great," Paul mumbled, "even Kruismara can't turn around without getting stabbed in the back."

"Of course," Max continued, "Verdana was killed before she could accomplish the rest of her goals, so the remaining members of Arbiter Corp are following the plan instead. With this, they inject various employees, including themselves, with altered versions of the Chimera Virus, which turns them into 'Hybrids'. This gives them access to the heightened powers and senses of the fusions, as well as an access to the Hivemind, but in the while of maintaining their humanity. Slowly, but surely, they're raising themselves in the ranks that exist within the Hivemind, which already allows them to control fusions by themselves without Kruismara's help." Max sighed. "Soon enough, they'll push Kruismara out of the way entirely, and they'll become the new heads of the Hivemind...and the fusion armies."

"So," Drew said, eyes narrowed, "if we're going to follow the idea of detonating the dishes, destroying Kruismara, and have the fusions armies slaughter themselves, then we need to move now, before Arbiter Corp finishes the Hybrid Phase and gains complete control over the Hivemind."

"Not only that," Dawn added, "but we need to capture the leaders of Arbiter Corp, too, so they can't complete the Hybrid Phase on the sidelines."

"Exactly." Max crossed his arms. "I've sent out this information to the other Resistance teams, who have passed it on to the military. We're already scheduled to meet up with General Abraham of the Kanto military fleets, who will discuss with us on what we're going to do from here."

Paul whistled, impressed. "Now we're finally getting somewhere."

I smiled in agreement.

_Yeah. Thanks, Soledad._

"Shit!"

I returned to reality, looking at Max, who glared at the monitor, which now flashed red with some kind of warning.

"Fusions?" Drew asked.

Max nodded. On the screen, there was a map that was shaped like the building the base had been built under, with a red dot tracing a pathway. "The system can't clarify what kind," he said, "but we definitely have something walking around up there."

Drew frowned. "We better go see what it is." He looked at Paul, Dawn, and Lionel. "Get ready. We're heading up there in a few minutes."

They both nodded and disappeared into the back rooms.

Drew met my eyes, his jaw firm. "I want you to stay down here with Max, May."

"What?" I cupped his face. "Drew, I'm not going to hide anymore. If we're in this, we're in this together, remember?"

"But, May-"

I smiled. "Argue with me all you want, but I'm not letting you go up there without me watching your back."

Drew opened his mouth, readying a retort, but he only closed it and sighed. "Fine," he said, still uneasy about the idea, though I could tell he remembered the reasons why Ellis and Moira had brought me back to life in the first place. "Just..." He pulled away, heading toward his room. He came back with a leather belt in his hands, minimized pokeballs hooked across it. "Keep your pokemon close."

I took the belt, brushing my fingers along the pokeballs, happy to finally see them again. Venusaur, Blastoise, and all of my other pokemon. Blaziken knew I was alive, but I wondered how the others would feel.

I didn't have time to ponder it, as Lionel, Paul, and Dawn returned, armed with knives, handguns, and rifles, their own pokeballs secured along their belts.

"I'll be on the look out from down here," Max said. He met my eyes. "Be careful."

I nodded and followed Drew and the others up the stairs.

* * *

Even with how it was morning outside, those dark storm clouds that clung to the skies made it feel like night. The building that disguised the base reflected this, its rooms dark, where turning on any lights could alert the fusion or fusions that were stalking the premise. We could still see one another, though, and I brushed my fingers along Drew's shoulder – a physical signal that I was still close to him – as he aimed his rifle ahead, gesturing to Dawn, Paul, and Lionel to each check the separate rooms that lined the building's hallways.

I kept my hand on my pokeballs, following Drew into an office room. I wasn't trained in the use of guns like Drew had been, but my experience in Enfer taught me a lot of methods in fighting fusions, including how to look anywhere Drew wasn't, watching for movements in the shadows – for that flash of pure red eyes.

The room broke off into a small hallway, two different rooms at its end. Drew pointed at one room. I nodded, moving toward it, while Drew sneaked into the other one.

I scanned the room I was in. When I found nothing beyond the strewn desks and computers, I headed into the next room, linked to the previous one through an open doorway-

"Help, me! Please!"

I stopped, my heart skipping a beat. That voice...it had been a woman's, her tone hinting tears. I looked down the hallway I had emerged into. The voice had been an echo, a ghostly echo, and I found myself running down the hallway.

"Someone! Please! Make it stop! No!"

The woman was being attacked by someone! Was it the fusion that was here? I ran faster, the voice still echoing from the room at the hallway's end.

"Stop! Please, stop! No!"

Almost there!

"Mommy!"

A child's voice this time? Had a family sneaked in here somehow?

I ran into the room.

The voices stopped.

As if they had never been there, they disappeared, their echoes fading. At the other end of the room, I saw a figure. It was a man, bald, his back turned toward me, facing the wall, standing still. He was tall – definitely taller than most people I've seen – and he was naked, the red-colored light that bled in from a window reflecting off his skin.

I blinked.

His skin. Stitches drew various, gruesome lines across it, patching together skins of different colors.

I swallowed hard, wondering if the man had been in some freak accident. I took a step closer, trying to look past his slender shape, trying to see that woman and child I had heard earlier. But, in front of him, there was nothing. Where had those voices come from?

"Excuse me?" I called out to him. "Are you okay?"

The man said nothing. Instead, I heard that woman and child's voices again:

"Get away from me! Stop! No!"

"Mommy! Where are you going! Let go of my mommy!"

I paused. The voices...they were coming from the man.

"W-who are you?" I asked.

Slowly, the man turned around. I looked at his face-

He didn't have a face. In his head, there were only indents where the eyes, nose, and mouth would've been.

I backed away, almost falling to the floor.

The faceless, bald man tilted his head at me, as if curious. He raised his long arms.

And those voices returned again, radiating from him.

"Mommy! What's happening! I'm scared!"

The woman was crying, as she said: "Stay strong, honey! Please, stay strong!"

A man's voice joined the chorus, his tone sadistic:

"Stop crying! No one can hear you!"

And he laughed. That voice laughed. It blocked out the woman's voice, it blocked out the child's, and in the background I heard the growl of a buzz saw.

But all I saw in front of me was the thin, tall, faceless man.

The man lunged toward me, the multicolored flesh on his arms splitting, forming six, long, branch-like appendages that stretched forward. At the same time, that woman's voice returned, the echo of her screams coming from him, all gathered together into a banshee's wail.

I wheeled around to run, but something wrapped around my leg, pulling me up and throwing me back against the wall. The faceless man, his slender arms pinning me to the wall, stepped closer to me. Pale tentacles burst from his back, still, like snakes waiting to strike.

I looked into the man's face, or where his face should've been. I looked into it, and I saw. I looked into it, and the shadow-covered room of the building melted away, as did the faceless man. In its place was a laboratory, a woman, no older than thirty, strapped to a table, next to a ten-year-old boy. The child spoke, his cries a ghostly echo like before, and the tears that ran down the mother's cheeks mixed together with the blood that already streamed from various slashes on her arms. From the side, a man approached, dark-haired, dressed in a lab coat with a picture of a white, unbalanced judgement scale within a green circle - the Arbiter Corporation logo - emblazoned on its collar. He looked at the woman and child, and he grinned.

"Stop crying," he said, just like he had before. "No one can hear you!"

He took a skinning knife from the table beside the woman and child, another woman walking into the room, turning on the buzz saw she held.

And as the man placed the skinning knife at the base of the child's throat, I tried to move. I tried to stop the scientists, run forward and push them away from the woman and her child, but I couldn't. I couldn't move. All I could do was scream with everything I had, telling them to stop, to not do this, to take me instead. But the scientists, the woman, and her child ignored me, as if I wasn't there, as if I was a helpless soldier beating on the back of a metal wall, viewing a memory that replayed itself over and over, unable to stop it from happening, unable to go back in time and save them all.

The child screamed as the skinning knife cut into his flesh.

And the scene faded away, and I was back in the business building, pinned to the wall, looking into the nonexistent face of the tall, thin man. The woman, the child, the scientists...they were all gone.

Tears pushed against my eyes.

"The woman," I said to the faceless man, "her child. Where are they? I need to save them!"

The man said nothing.

"Tell me!" I yelled at him.

Then, a voice spoke, containing the tones of the woman and her child, and the tones of all the women and children that had fallen before them – a chorus led on by a demonic voice, the faceless man's voice, that was everything but human.

"_You're too late."_

And the faceless man reared back, his elongated arm throwing me to the floor.

"May!"

Tears pouring from my eyes, I looked up. Drew ran forward from the doorway, kneeling by my side. He looked at the faceless man, who towered over the both of us, and Drew grabbed the small communication device that hanged from his collar.

"It's an operator!" Drew yelled into the device – to Dawn, Paul, and Lionel. "I repeat, we have an operator!"

The faceless man waved his clawed hand, and the device exploded. Drew fell back, holding his hand, smoke rising from the remains of the device.

Quickly, Drew grabbed me, pulled me to my feet, and led me out of the room and down the hallway, away from the man.

Finally finding my voice again, I screamed, "_What is that thing_?"

"Keep running!" Drew said, his eyes ahead. "Whatever you do, don't look at it!"

The faceless man emerged from the room. Slowly, he turned his head, looking down the hallway, watching as we ran. Then, tentacles burst from his back, stabbing into the ground like extra legs, and he rushed down the hallway after us.

"Dammit!" Drew hissed. He grabbed the handgun at his side, turned, and fired.

The bullets sunk into the man's flesh, but it didn't stop him. He only grew closer.

Hissing another curse, Drew led me into another room, the faceless man right behind us.

"Get down!"

At the sound of Paul's voice, I immediately dove for the ground, Drew next to me.

Paul, a shotgun in his hands, fired at the faceless man. The man stepped back from the force of the hit, and Paul pumped the gun, firing again. Shells fell to the floor, as Paul fired endlessly, pinning the faceless man to the wall.

The faceless man roared, the sound reflecting that banshee's wail – the chorus of slaughtered women and children. When Paul stopped to reload, the faceless man ran toward him – but only to be blocked by Dawn, who jumped out from the nearby turn, stabbing her blades into the man's chest. The man stepped back again, the knives protruding from his flesh, and Dawn ducked, just in time for Lionel, who had emerged at the opposite end of the hall, to fire his sniper rifle, the bullet sinking into the faceless man's head. Blood and brain matter exploded out the back, covering the wall, and the man fell to the ground. His tentacles, twitching like a dying spider's legs, curled around him, shriveling.

As the moment calmed down, Drew and I got up from the floor and approached the faceless man. Paul got down on his knee, checking the man's pulse point at the corner of his jaw, and he nodded at Drew.

"It's dead, boss."

Drew breathed a sigh of relief.

"We couldn't kill the other one, though," Lionel added, approaching us from down the hallway.

"There was another one?"

"Yeah, it got away."

Drew slammed his fist into the wall. "Dammit!"

"What is that thing?" I asked. "Is it a fusion?"

"Yeah," Dawn said, kicking it in its side, making sure it was really dead, "they're called operators."

I looked down at the operator – at its patches of multicolored flesh, all sewn together with black stitches. "When I was getting closer to it," I said, "I kept hearing...voices, of a woman and her child. When this thing pinned me to the wall, I looked at its head, where its face should've been, and I saw." I swallowed; the memory made bile crawl up my throat. "I saw a laboratory, with-"

"That's what they do," Paul muttered. "If you look at them, they can push that memory into your head and break you down with it, so it's easier to kill you."

"But why?" I asked. "Why does it have that memory in its head?"

Dawn hesitated and looked at Lionel, who shook his head. Even Paul seemed paler at the idea. Drew sighed and was the one who spoke:

"Operators aren't created only through the Chimera Virus," he said. "They're partly man made by Arbiter Corp. When the fusion attack on the surface was first starting out, women and children across most of the regions were being kidnapped at the same time. No one knew why, until operators started showing up. That vision you saw, with the laboratory..."

I looked at the dead operator again, at its stitches, at its multicolored flesh. "Those women and children...they were skinned alive, weren't they?"

Drew nodded. "And the skins were used to make flesh for operators. That's why when an operator is near, you can hear the echoes of the women and children as they were..." He shook his head. "You know. As Paul said, operators carry that memory with them, using it as a way of immobilizing you. It's all a result of Arbiter Corp's wish to create fusions that could blend in with human society. Even if these guys are far from human, that didn't stop them from sending them out anyway." He looked at his palm, where remnants of that communication device were still smeared across his skin. "Also, cameras, telephones, anything that can alert you about their existence, it all screws up with a wave of their hands. It's said that there's a piece of humanity still left within operators - a piece aware of the monsters they've become - and they don't like being acknowledged in any way."

"Operators are like the messengers of the fusion fleets," Dawn said. "They sneak around different spots, recording what they see, and bringing it back to other fusions. Now that we know that fusions run on a hivemind complex, it explains how operators can send their reports to various fusions, and have those fusions show up only hours later."

"That's why we have to leave," Drew said. "The operator that got away will undoubtedly spread the word that we're here. It's not safe to stay here anymore."

Paul spat on the operator's corpse. "Sick bastards, that Arbiter Corp."

I looked at Drew, seeing the darkness in his gaze. I touched his shoulder. "Drew," I said, my voice light, "an operator was what originally led the ambush that killed Soledad, wasn't it?"

Drew sighed. "Yeah. We didn't know much about operators back then, so we walked right by one, thinking that it was just a man trying to hide from the fusions. I was wrong. It followed us, and brought that horde of fusions with it."

He turned away from me.

"I'm sorry, Soledad," he said. "I'm so sorry..."

I leaned my head against his back.

_You're too late..._

I closed my eyes, and the operator's voice - the voice of all those women and children - faded off into silence.

* * *

**AN: **Operators were inspired by the Slender Man mythos, as well as by Thaddius, a raid boss in _World of Warcraft_.


	17. Stand In the Rain

**-Soledad-**

I had spent most of the night reviewing the information I had transferred from that USB drive to my helmet. Across the inside of my visor, the profiles of the five remaining council leaders of the Arbiter Corporation still lingered, as well as diagrams depicting the three dish towers that gave them control over Kruismara and provided Kruismara with that shield of invincibility. I looked over the various concepts of the Hivemind and the Hybrid Phase (which helped me in answering that question on why I had lost that fight against Alistair Donahue), and I dove deeper into the information about those three dish towers. Emerald Harbor, Odysseus, and At Hell's End. Taking out those towers meant Kruismara could be killed, which meant the fusions would slaughter themselves because there would no longer be a head to lead the Hivemind – or, at least until Arbiter Corp finished the Hybrid Phase, knocked off Kruismara themselves, and took complete control over the fusions, which would make things a hell of a lot more difficult.

I sighed. Had May, Drew, and the rest of the military seen this information already? Ironic, if I was the one to retrieve and deliver it, but they were the ones to make the first move. The more I thought about it, though, the more I doubted it. These files, even with all of the information they gave about the fusions and about the Arbiter Corporation, didn't give exact coordinates on the locations of the three dish towers. Considering how much the fusion armies relied on the Hivemind to not eat each other, it was obvious that the military would turn to the idea of taking out the towers and Kruismara to win this war.

I was a soldier once. I had an idea on how they looked at things.

Still, I was curious to see if May and everyone else at the Hoenn Resistance HQ had looked over the information, or if May had simply tossed away the drive, not wanting to have anything to do with me anymore.

If something, I could just make sure they were alright.

* * *

My charizard grunted as we came up to Lilycove City. It was a little into the afternoon now, according to the clock at the corner of my visor, but the dark clouds that loomed over the land made it seem like midnight. I patted Charizard on the neck. He lowered to the ground, close to the two-story building that disguised the base for the Hoenn Resistance. There, I returned him to his pokeball, staying in the shadows.

Whenever May had been stressed in the past – about contests, her pokemon, or somesuch – she would sometimes walk outside to get some fresh air. That was one of her ways of calming down, and I doubted that it was any different now, definitely with how much stress any survivor of this apocalypse was facing. It also made things easier for me, not having to find a way to lure her out without alerting the others.

I looked at the front of the Resistance HQ. My brows rose. Two military trucks were parked right by the entrance. Drew emerged from the building, carrying two rifles. He handed them to a man with lavender-colored hair – what was his name again? Paul Slate? - who stored them in the back with crates of ammo and other weapons. Max came out seconds later, bringing a computer to the back of the other truck, where a woman I immediately recognized as Dawn Berlitz helped him in finding a place for it that would conserve room.

They were...moving. Why? Had something happened? The base seemed perfectly intact; or, at least when it came to outside appearances. Why were they in a rush?

May came out of the building. Her eyes were dark, her skin pale, and every few seconds she closed her eyes, as if to calm herself down. She released her blastoise and her blaziken. She pointed at the trucks. Her pokemon nodded, disappearing into the building to help Drew and the others with their packing.

I looked around, found a small rock, and gently tossed it. It rolled over to May's foot. She looked down at the sound, saw the rock, and then looked in my direction, a sense of fear in her eyes. She opened her mouth, as if to alert Drew, but I came out of the shadows fast enough, gesturing to her that it was just me, not a fusion. Her eyes still widened, but that was expected, and she glanced at the trucks before she followed me to the back of the building, where the others couldn't see us.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, her tone both hard and relieved, as if she couldn't decide whether to hug me or scold me.

I would've taken my helmet off, if Drew wasn't a few feet away. I tapped my visor – a quick reminder to May to keep her voice down – and said, "I wanted to make sure you got the USB drive."

"We did, and we already know about what's on it."

"Including the dish towers, the Hivemind, and the Hybrid Phase?"

"Yes."

I hummed thoughtfully. "Do you guys have any idea on where the towers are?"

May shifted in place. If she did know, she was hesitant to tell me. "No, Max is still figuring that out." She looked at me, meeting my eyes through my one-way visor. "Why?" she asked.

"Why what?"

"Why did you give the drive to us?"

I swallowed. I knew that that question was going to pop up sooner or later. But, it still struck me like an unexpected blow. "You needed the information," I said firmly, "just as much as I did."

"It goes against what you stand for."

What I stood for? Assassination, revenge, and watching my own hide were not philosophies I stood for. Then again, I couldn't blame May for thinking that way. As long as I had this suit on, I might as well have been standing on a soapbox, too.

I sighed.

"I know," I said.

May's eyes softened. "Are you thinking about coming back?"

"Coming back?"

"To the Resistance, to the life you led before. Take off that suit, be there for Malcolm, and tell Drew the truth."

I opened my mouth, but no words came. I shook my head instead.

"I can't."

"Why not?" May asked, her tone a hiss. "Why can't you just let it go? If Harley was here, I know he wouldn't want you to be doing this! Not for him, not for Malcolm, not for anyone!" She pulled back. "He'd want you to be safe, because he would know that Drew and Malcolm miss you and that they need you to be there for them. He wouldn't want you to be out there gaining enemies that could kill you in your sleep. Dedicate as much justice as you want to Harley, but I know he would turn it down, because he would just want you. Not Artemis – not the soldier, with the blood on her hands and the holes in her heart and only a fragment of who she once was. Not her. You."

I said nothing.

"Come back," May said, her voice gentler now. "Just live, for Harley. Don't make his death – his sacrifice – be in vain. Please, Soledad."

There was a minute of silence, where the both of us just stood there. Me, contemplating everything she said, rather than just brushing it off like I had done with all those other times words like that had been uttered. And her, staring at me, waiting for something to happen, even if it wasn't certain that something would.

Always waiting.

Always there.

_Never change. Never stop falling. Like the rain._

I pushed the thought out of my head and nodded toward the other side of the building, where the trucks were. "Why are you guys leaving?"

May's jaw firmed, hesitant toward dropping the other topic, but followed anyway. "We were attacked by two operators. One got away, so we're heading out in case it tries to relay the message that we're here."

"...Operators?"

I paused, trying to remember what an operator fusion looked like. The fact that the name enough seemed only faintly familiar proved that I hadn't seen one in a long time.

"Drew told me that an operator was what led the fusion attack that almost killed you."

I blinked, the memories coming back, piecing together in my head. Operators...bald, tall, thin, almost pale, save for the fact that they consist of the flesh from skinned-alive women and children – the women and children that were abducted by Arbiter Corp back when the fusion attack on the surface was just beginning.

The "human abominations" of the fusion fleets.

In fact, they looked like-

I froze. My heart hammered against my chest. Quickly, I reached into my pocket and pulled out the "Mr. Lean" picture Malcolm had given to me.

Operators looked just like what Malcolm had drawn.

_Mal said he based Mr. Lean on someone he saw outside_, Cary had told me.

Someone he saw outside.

I nearly dropped the picture.

"I have to go."

I grabbed Charizard's pokeball, released him, and got on his back.

"What?" May asked. "Why? What's wrong?"

I didn't answer, only telling Charizard to fly.

He took off.

* * *

I reached Dewford Island in three hours. If Charizard was tired, he didn't show it. As we crossed the island's border, I saw smoke rising from the distance – from the survivor sanctuary.

"No!" I cried out.

Charizard flew toward the survivor sanctuary, revealing the fires that consumed the entire community. Houses collapsed on themselves, and people and pokemon ran for their lives – as hordes of fusions invaded from all sides. I jumped from Charizard's back, grabbed my rifle as soon as I hit the ground, and slammed the back of the gun to the head of a fusion whose path I'd intercepted, pushing it out of my way. I took a second to look around. Bodies were already strewn across the streets. Men, women, children, and pokemon, their blood mixing together into pools across the asphalt, fusions feasting on their flesh, while others hunted down the survivors that tried to flee.

_No!_

I ran toward Cary's house, shooting any fusions that got in my way. Charizard, providing aerial support, threw down the harpies that attacked from above. I heard gunfire in the distance – from the guards still trying to protect what could be saved – but then I heard screams, screams of pain and screams of fear, and I knew their resistance was pointless.

Cary's house had imploded, just like most of the houses that lined the street. I snapped the neck of a scout fusion that tried to bite me, and I rushed up to the top of the rubble.

"Malcolm!" I called out. I took off my helmet, screaming as loud as I could: "Malcolm!"

But I couldn't see him, amidst the smoke and the rubble and the blinding fires, the screams and the blood and the roars from the fusions. I looked around frantically, my eyes darting, and I saw something, sticking out of the rubble. I ran over to it. A hand, limp with death, stuck out from behind a fallen wall. A woman's hand, a familiar bracelet on its wrist.

Cary.

I closed my eyes, fighting back tears, and looked back out over the chaos.

"Malcolm!"

Why hadn't I seen it? Why hadn't I recognized that what Malcolm had drawn and seen was an operator? Why hadn't I stayed? If I'd stayed, I could've stopped this. I could've saved everyone. I could've hunted down that operator, and I could've stopped it from telling every other fusion that survivors were here.

But I hadn't. I had left. I hadn't been there for Malcolm. I had let him down again.

_I had let him down._

_Again._

I wheeled – and just as a helicopter came into sight. It approached me, hovering in the air; the droning sounds of its spinning blades were mute when compared to everything else around me. The door slid open, and Alistair Donahue grinned at me.

"You missed half of the action, Artemis," he said, running a hand through his blonde hair, as if we were having a casual conversation. "Artemis. Did I get the name right? I don't understand why you choose to go by that now. Soledad is a much prettier name. Means 'solitude'. So, it would still fit you, right?" He laughed, his red eyes flashing. "Oh, look at all this chaos, all this fear. It's delicious. You know what's even more delicious? Revenge. Serve it hot, serve it cold, it never rots, only gets juicier. You took out one of our camps, the rest of the council is pissed, so the least I could do is send an operator to follow you, get an idea of how you work, who you really are, and see if I can find anything that drives you. Good harbingers, those operators. They can really get the job done, definitely if they have help." He winked. "So, thanks for leading one here. None of this could've happened without you."

My fists clenched. I wanted to scream, jump up onto the helicopter, and bash in Alistair's face until there was enough blood to rival the amount spilled today. But, I couldn't shoot him, and Charizard was nowhere in sight. Alistair was part fusion, also; he'd already proven that whatever I threw at him, it wouldn't affect him.

"Oh, by the way," he said, reaching for something from the back of the helicopter. "About that revenge the other council members want after what you did to one of our camps..."

He pulled, the object providing some resistance, until he got it into view.

My eyes widened.

"Mommy!" Malcolm screamed, tears pouring from his eyes. Alistair held onto his arm with one hand, and that was enough to keep Malcolm still, even with how much he fought.

"I think this will make a good payment," Alistair said.

I moved forward-

"Nah-uh." Alistair grinned again. "Try to cause us even more trouble than you've already have, and I'll snap this boy's pretty little neck."

I backed away. I had to.

Alistair nodded. "Good girl. You know that you shouldn't bite the hand that feeds you. I like that." He looked at Malcolm. "Hm. What should we do here? Let's see...his flesh is a good color. It'll make a nice cover for a new operator. Or, we can just inject him with the Chimera Virus." He looked at me. "Yeah, that sounds good. Make your son a fusion – how's that for a kick in the ass? And, who knows, maybe he'll make a better fusion than his _daddy_ would've been."

"Let him go!" I cried. "I'll do anything you want, just let him go!"

"Oh, come on, now. You're Artemis. You're supposed to be a lone wolf, a strong female character. You're supposed to kick ass and chew bubblegum, and still be sexy enough that even your enemies would masturbate to you if they weren't running for their lives." Alistair tightened his hold on Malcolm. "But, yet, here you are, broken down like a basket case, and all because of this mere child. You're not following the status quo, honey."

"You bastard!"

Alistair shook his head, unimpressed. "I got somewhere to be. It was fun, but I think my fusions can hold down the fort here by themselves." He lowered his face to Malcolm's. "Come, lad, let's see if your mother can run fast."

With that, the helicopter took off into the air. Alistair laughed again. Malcolm reached for me.

"Mommy!"

"Follow the lure, little fish," Alistair said. "See you at Emerald Harbor."

He closed the door, cutting off my view of him and Malcolm, and the helicopter headed off for the distance.

I ran. I ran after the helicopter. I ran until pain shot up my legs, but the helicopter was faster. As soon as I crossed the beach, it was already gone.

It was gone.

Malcolm was gone.

I fell to my knees. I roared out into the sky. I slammed my fist into the sandy ground. I did it again. Again. Again. Again.

Cary was dead.

All those other people were dead.

Malcolm was gone.

_It's your fault._

Tears fell from my eyes and I struggled to breathe. That monster in the pit of my mind – the real Artemis – broke out into sinister laughter.

_Harley died in vain_, it said, its voice coursing through my head, _and it's all your fault._


	18. Monolith

**-May-**

"May?"

I blinked. "Hm?"

Drew's eyes softened. "Are you alright? You've been staring into space since we left the base."

"Oh." I cleared my throat awkwardly, hoping that it would clear Drew's concern, too. "I'm fine. Just...thinking, and worried about what will happen in the future."

_And Soledad._

But, obviously, I couldn't say that last part. I was the only member of the Hoenn Resistance who knew that Soledad was alive. Expressing my worry over what could have led her to suddenly leave during our talk was out of the question.

I looked around. A few hours ago, we had finished packing our supplies into two military trucks and left the base, making sure that the operator that escaped couldn't bring a fusion ambush to our door. In one truck, I sat beside Drew, who drove, while Max pointed out the way to a military hangar, where we were scheduled to meet General Abraham and determine our next move in the fight against the fusions.

Behind us, Dawn and Lionel were in the other truck, Paul driving it. Every now and then I looked into one of the side mirrors, checking to see if they were still there, regaining my confidence whenever I noted they were.

"I think we're here."

I looked at Max, following his eyes. A mile ahead of us the land cut off, shaping jagged cliffs that bordered the ocean. The horizon separated the sea, colored an inky black, from the sky, which was covered in clouds of obsidian, gray, and blood red. I heard the waves crash into the rocks, relentless, and I looked back at Max, trying to read his expression, wondering if he was confused or if he had miscalculated the coordinates given to us by General Abraham. There was no sign of a military hangar anywhere. All I saw was empty land between us and the cliffs, the dead forest having ended a half a mile back.

Max pointed. "There."

Drew nodded, turning the steering wheel. I leaned toward the windshield to look closer. Toward the cliffs was a small building, a single soldier standing by it, a rifle in his arms. His eyes were on us, serious. Drew drove up to him, flashing an insignia emblazoned on the arm of his armor. The insignia of the Resistance.

The soldier saluted. "Drew Trandafir, of the Hoenn Resistance. Nice to see you. General Abraham's been expecting you." He frowned, eyeing the size of our trucks. "Why the large load?"

"Had a run-in with a couple of operators," Drew said. "We had to leave our base."

"I see."

Paul, Dawn, and Lionel got out of the truck behind us. Drew, Max, and I followed. The soldier directed all of us to a manhole cover in the ground, rusted with age. As if on cue, another soldier slid the cover off, poking her head out from underneath.

She saluted. Drew returned the gesture.

"This way, Sir," she said. "I'll take you all to General Abraham."

* * *

As soon as I climbed down the ladder and into the vault, my eyes widened. The inside was huge – various rooms breaking off from multiple hallways. The walls were made of concrete, shield-less bulbs burning brightly above us.

As we followed the soldier down one hallway, I looked into the different rooms. One had multiple soldiers and pokemon seated in rows, watching a presentation that detailed the strengths and weaknesses of various fusions. Scouts, linebackers, lashers, behemoths, they were all there, including operators, and fusion types I hadn't even seen before. Some soldiers were writing notes, while others watched with determined looks. In another room, scientists worked with vials, some filled with a familiar green-colored liquid. The cure for the Chimera Virus. In the room across from that one, soldiers practiced their rifle aim on makeshift targets, their pokemon learning how to dodge fusion bites in the area right next to them.

The soldier led us to the end of the hallway. She stood by an open doorway and gestured for us to enter, saluting us one last time as we passed her. In the room, men and women operated multiple computers, their pokemon carrying files and devices to a group of soldiers gathered around a table. On the table was a map that showed the blueprints of Emerald Harbor, Odysseus, and At Hell's End, detailing their different floors and how they were structured. The soldiers spoke in frustrated voices to each other, jabbing at various parts of the blueprints. A heated debate in the making.

Drew approached the table, the rest of us behind him. I felt out of place, needless to say; like a child in a room filled with experienced businessmen.

The soldiers looked up at Drew. Immediately they saluted, their argument dead and gone.

However, there was a member in the group who didn't look up. It was a woman, tall and thin, probably somewhere in her thirties. She was dressed in a black captain uniform, badges and patches emblazoned on the left breast of her suit. She wore a black-and-white hat, a gold-colored picture of the Kanto region's symbol painted on its front, matching with the gold lines that traced the edges of her sleeve cuffs. Her short blonde-colored hair, tucked neatly into her hat, still shined in the overhead lights. Seeing her standing there, leaning over the table and examining the map, I felt a sense of awe, as if I was standing next to a legendary.

Eventually, the woman looked up, sharp blue eyes focused on Drew.

Drew saluted. "General Abraham," he said with respect, "Drew Trandafir, of the Hoenn Resistance Reconnaissance Service."

The woman hummed. "Bloody formalities," she said, her Scottish accent noticeable, but not thick. "Won't get you anywhere in this barking war."

"Pardon me, Ma'am?"

The woman fully stood up at that. "General Deryn Abraham," she said. Noticing that Drew's confused expression was still there, she added, "Just 'Deryn'. No sense calling me anything else."

From the shadows, the black-and-red-colored eyes of a haxorus glowed brightly. The pokemon walked up to Deryn's side, its protective glance over her confirming that it was her pokemon. When she approached the door, the pokemon was right behind her.

"Care for a dauner?" she said, eyeing us. "We got a lot to talk about."

* * *

"Though we're still uncertain on the location of At Hell's End," Deryn said, as she led us back down the hallway, "we've recently figured out the locations of Odysseus and Emerald Harbor."

Drew breathed a sigh of relief. "So, this means we're definitely heading through on the main strategy?"

"Aye," Deryn said, affectionately scratching her haxorus under its chin as we walked. "We take out Odysseus and Emerald Harbor, and secure At Hell's End. Since we're close to figuring out the location of At Hell's End, we're already planning the attack on Odysseus and Emerald Harbor."

"Alright. What do we do?"

"Emerald Harbor is positioned near the southern end of Johto, close to the ocean, while Odysseus is buried in the desert wasteland of Orre. I've been assigned to lead the attack on Emerald Harbor. I would like you to fight with me." She turned, taking an alternate hallway we hadn't seen before. We followed her. "Since operators ruined the security of your base, there's no reason why you can't accompany me." She smiled – a single break from her stern countenance. "Aye?"

Drew returned the smile. "Couldn't agree with you more."

We approached a door with two soldiers. At the sight of Deryn, they saluted, and the door opened. We emerged into a room with more computers; however, on the other side, the wall was made of glass, showing a hangar beyond it. I walked closer to the wall, and I swallowed at the actual size of the hangar – or, rather, the size of the three battle ships docked within it. Large enough to probably house cities, the three ships towered over everything, the men, women, and pokemon on the ground running in and out of them through ramps that connected their multiple entrances to the floor. Different supplies were stored inside, while other workers polished and loaded the guns and cannons that lined the ships' sides.

Deryn walked up to my side. "Pure dead beautiful, aren't they? Monoliths, they're called – a secret project that began when the fusions first attacked. These are going to help us destroy Emerald Harbor, while another set of Monoliths will lead the attack on Odysseus."

I looked at her. "These things fly?"

"Aye."

"When do we take off?" Drew asked.

"Two hours."

I breathed out slowly, a ghost of a smile on my lips. "We're really doing this, aren't we?"

Deryn met my eyes, a sense of excitement in their sharp blue depths. She grinned, and I knew that I wasn't the only one that was finally seeing a light in all of this darkness.

* * *

**AN: **The character of Deryn is a shout out to Scott Westerfeld and his _Leviathan _trilogy.


	19. Know Your Enemy

**-Soledad-**

"Artemis-"

I faced Ratchet. "Don't call me that!"

Ratchet frowned, though he didn't seem scared, regardless of the rifle I pointed at his chest. He met my eyes, and, in those green depths, I saw myself. I saw the anger in my face, the stiffness in my shoulders, the long, red hair that fell past my shoulders. And the blood. The blood that ran down my armor from the fusions I'd slain back at Dewford, the blood I wished was Alistair Donahue's, the blood I would pay back with my own if it just meant Malcolm would be safe and away from Arbiter Corp.

But no.

He was gone.

I roared out and slammed the rifle down onto Ratchet's table. Right next to it, my helmet stared at me, that monster purring with contempt within the helmet's ghost-like gaze. I wanted to throw that, too, and watch it ricochet off the pipes that consisted the walls. But, I couldn't touch it. I didn't want to touch. I never wanted to touch it again. I closed my eyes, fighting back tears.

A hand touched my shoulder. I couldn't feel the warmth of it through my suit, but I could feel the pressure.

"Artemis..." Ratchet said.

"Don't call me that," I whispered.

_I'm not Artemis._

_I can't be Artemis._

_Artemis led the fusions to Dewford. Not me. I would've never left Malcolm. I would've never let him down. I would've never let Harley down. Artemis did all of that._

_Not me._

_That's not me._

But, when I opened my eyes, when I looked toward the helmet, I saw nothing else in its gaze but me.

_You're Artemis, _that monster said, crawling into my throat, clawing at me from the inside, _accept who you are. Soledad is dead, but Artemis is not. _The monster chuckled. _Would you rather be dead? Go ahead, then. Take that rifle. Shoot yourself. End it. Become one of the ghosts of Enfer. You're too weak to be anything else, anyway._

"Soledad."

The monster hissed and vanished, and, in its place, was Ratchet's vault again. Ratchet pushed his way between me and the table, blocking my view of the helmet. I exhaled, slowly, regaining my hold on reality. My name sounded like a foreign word – a part of a language long lost – yet the more I remembered it, the dimmer the monster's voice became.

Ratchet shifted. "What happened at Dewford-"

"It's my fault," I said. "If I had just remembered what an operator-"

"You didn't create operators. You didn't create the fusions. You didn't give Arbiter Corp their sick obsession with fear, and you sure as hell didn't cause the destruction of the Dewford sanctuary." Ratchet swallowed. "What happened was terrible, but, in a way, inevitable, with this deep cesspool Arbiter Corp has been keeping us in since Enfer City was destroyed and the fusions attacked the surface."

"It doesn't matter," I hissed. "Either way, I let Malcolm down. I couldn't catch up to that helicopter. I couldn't find Alistair Donahue, and I couldn't find Malcolm. I just ran and ended up here. I have nowhere else to go."

"Yes, you do. Back to the Resistance. Back to Drew."

I forced his hand off and punched the wall, the echo reverberating through the pipes. Keeping my arm there, I leaned my forehead against it, closing my eyes again. "Artemis would've disgusted Drew. What would he think toward someone who couldn't even remember who she was?"

"It wouldn't be Artemis he would help. It would be you. It would be Soledad."

"Soledad is dead."

"No, she's not, and you damn well know that!"

I tightened my fist. "How can I know? All these years I've lived as Artemis, forcing myself to forget what emotion was, the memories, the person Harley fell in love with in the first place. Harley is nothing but one of the ghosts of Enfer, and he'll never be more than that, all because I've forgotten who I am, all because of my obsession with revenge, which is the reason why Malcolm is gone."

"Soledad..." Ratchet sighed. "Harley sacrificed himself down there to save you, to save May, to save Drew, to save Lionel, and to save the future. Without his sacrifice, May and Drew never would've gotten the chance to confront Verdana, and, though we're still in that cesspool, we'd probably be in hell itself if Verdana was still around." He touched my shoulder again, his voice soft: "We all do things we're not proud of, and we cannot change what's happened. Time passes so fast. Cities fall to ruin, families fall apart, and futures fall to the ground. But you don't need to be perfect, you just need to remember who you are. You fight when you need to, not when you want to, and you fight to protect what can build those cities again, what can restrengthen the bonds between that family, and what can pick back up the future."

I turned and met his eyes.

"You can't change what's happened," he said, "but you can make sure it doesn't happen again."

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. In those green depths, I didn't see disappointment, I didn't see disgust. I saw...me.

Soledad.

"But," I said, "I can't face Drew. Not now. Just...not like this."

Ratchet firmed his jaw, both protest and acceptance in his eyes. "Follow me."

* * *

"Just before you arrived," Ratchet said, leading me down a hallway I didn't even know had been there; hidden amongst the pipes that consisted the walls, "I was able to pick up a radio signal from the communications between two military outposts in the north. They talked about how the coordinates for Emerald Harbor and Odysseus have been figured out, and how the military, including the Resistance, are forming together to attack both, while a separate segment stands back to secure At Hell's End once it's located."

I almost stopped in place. "You know where Emerald Harbor is?"

Ratchet looked back at me. "Yeah. That's where Alistair said he was taking Malcolm, right? By now, Arbiter Corp is probably aware that the military is heading for the dishes, but it sounds like the attack is still going to be carried out."

We walked through a large door, emerging into a small hangar. On the platform in the center was a military drop ship, which looked liked it had once been shot down, but Ratchet had recovered it and patched it back up.

"You need to save Malcolm," Ratchet said.

"Ratchet, I-"

"I've already inserted the coordinates to Emerald Harbor into the ship's database. It should lead you there with no problem. There's also an armory in there if you need some extra weapons."

"But, Ratchet..." When I met his eyes, though, I couldn't think of anything to say.

"This is something I know Soledad would do, not Artemis. Save Malcolm, bring him back home, and we'll move on from there. You don't want to let Harley down, I know that, and this is the place to start."

With that, he disappeared behind the door. He came back seconds later, the helmet to the _Artemis _suit in his hands. He looked into the visor and frowned, as if he could see that very same monster that waited inside, and he hesitated.

"Here," he said, handing it to me, a weak smile on his face that I knew was forced, "you can't be a superhero without your mask."

I took the helmet, brushing my fingers across the visor, seeing myself in its reflection.

And I didn't see Artemis.

I saw Soledad.

I saw _me._

I handed the helmet back to Ratchet, a real smile on my face.

"I don't need it anymore," I said.

And I made my way down the steps and toward the ship, and I heard that monster thrash around from within the helmet, reaching for me, his roars of protest faint, but there.

_What are you doing? _It snarled. _Soledad is dead! You're Artemis now! Do you want to be dead?_

I ignored it, climbing into the ship. I saw Ratchet fumble with the consoles by the door. He smirked and gave me a thumbs up. The platform that the ship was on slowly rose, the ceiling opening up, revealing the smoke-covered sky. I adjusted the ship's readings, making sure that the digital map beside me provided the pathway to Emerald Harbor. The ship's engines woke, the floor rumbling beneath my boots, the sensors flashing on, as the ship rose from the platform and into the air.

I reached into my pocket and pulled out the picture – that picture of Drew, May, Harley, and I, back in the past, before everything had changed. I brushed my thumb along Harley's cheek, and I set the picture against the dashboard, my eyes on his.

_You're a fool, _the monster hissed. _You need me! You need Artemis!_

"Not anymore," I said, looking ahead. "Now shut up."

With the push of a lever, the ship sped forward and into the sky.

_I'm coming, Malcolm._


	20. That Monster In the Mirror

**-May-**

"Fire."

At Drew's command, I pulled the trigger. A bark echoed throughout the room. The handgun reared back at me. I stumbled, but I regained my footing before I fell into Drew.

He grabbed my shoulders, steadied me, and chuckled. "It's not going to bite you."

"I know," I said, moving my finger away from the gun's trigger. The jolt of the shot still surged through my arm, and, though I had fired the very ten rounds I had loaded into its magazine, I didn't want to risk the small chance that I hadn't. "Still made me jump."

"That's expected." Drew took the gun from me and placed it on the table beside us. He walked over to the shooting range and pushed the button on the console beside its edge. My paper target came forward on the conveyor belt. He snatched it before I could and examined it. "Eight out of ten shots," he said. "Of hitting the paper, I mean. You didn't exactly hit the bulls-eye. Still, that's good for a novice."

"Hope so. This was your idea."

He dropped the paper into the trash can and met my eyes. "If you really want to be a member of the Resistance, you need to know how to fire a gun. If you use just your pokemon, the fusions will do anything they can to either kill or bite them, and if by chance they're tossed aside, you have to have another line of defense to use."

"I know."

Drew's fingers brushed my jawline. "We leave on the Monoliths in one hour," he said. "When we go, when we head to Emerald Harbor, I know this mission is not going to be easy." His gaze softened. "I've always wanted you by my side, even when we were younger, through hell or high water, but this isn't what I had in mind."

"None of us had this in mind." I grabbed his hand, his touch warm beneath my own. "But dragons were meant to fly, not be caged. Wolves were meant to run, not be left in the dust. You and I are meant to face this together, whether we come back with our shields or on them."

"May-"

I smiled. "I won't let you down, Trandafir."

His forehead touched mine. Our lips brushed, his voice soft against my skin. "You never have."

I leaned into the kiss.

We broke apart when the door opened. Paul, dressed in the black-colored armor of the Resistance, stopped in the midst of crossing the threshold. He looked at us, at how our arms were still around one another, and his brow rose in what I assumed was an entertained manner. Then again, the frown on his face obstructed any semblances of amusement.

"I thought shooting ranges were for shooting," he said. "But, you were always the one to never follow the status quo, boss."

Drew didn't let go of me. "Are we prepared to leave on the Monoliths?"

"Yeah. Deryn said to bring our weapons and computer stuff on board, since we might be staying on the Monoliths 'til further notice. Apart from being weapons, those things were designed to be sanctuaries for survivors, 'cause there's a lot less fusion types to worry about when you're in the air. But, it all depends on when we get back." Paul walked over to the shooting range, grabbed a piece of paper from the box right next to it, attached it to the hooks on the conveyor belt, and sent it off to the far side of the room with the push of a button. "More like 'if we get back'."

Drew sighed. "I better go check on Max, Dawn, and Lionel." He let me go, kissed my forehead, and disappeared out the door.

"So," Paul said, when we were alone, "I'm guessing you both weren't really in here to have hot sex."

I rolled my eyes. "No."

"Practicing your shooting, then?"

"A little," I said. "I'm not really a gunslinger yet, though."

Paul grunted. He pulled out a handgun from the holster attached to his leg, aimed, and fired. The gun barked beneath his grip, while pieces of the targeted paper ripped away from the shots. "I wouldn't worry too much," he said after the last round was fired. He popped out the magazine and replaced it with a new one, as if to mimic the rush we faced while in the actual battlefield. "When you're surrounded by bloodthirsty monsters and the only thing standing between you and them is a gun, you'll learn how to use it – and fast."

I leaned against the wall. "How long did it take you?"

"As long as I needed to learn how to shoot those fusion bastards to the ground." He fired, pausing between shots to talk. "Which didn't take long at all."

"Because of...Reggie?"

Paul fired – and missed the paper completely. He lowered the gun, and I mentally scolded myself for opening up an old wound so blatantly. "How do you know about him?"

"I...uh..."

He snorted. "Doesn't matter." He aimed the gun at the paper, his grip so tight his knuckles were white. "Fusion bastards," he said, and he fired again.

"I'm sorry. For what happened."

Paul stopped. "Apologies and promises won't bring dead people back." He looked at me, eyes stern. "You were the lucky one."

* * *

The Monoliths' bronze-colored surfaces reflected the overhead lights, painting the entire hangar in a reddish-brown hue. Workers and pokemon still carried supplies up and down the ramps that extended from the ships' various entrances, calling out orders that echoed across the hangar's hollow air. Since I sat along the wall in the hangar itself to watch the action happen, my blaziken sharpening her claws beside me, I hoped I wasn't in the workers' way. None of them said anything, though, and they passed by without so much as a second glance.

_You were the lucky one._

Paul's words were strong, as if he stood right beside me, saying them over and over. I was lucky. I hadn't been brought back because of Drew's grief toward my death, nor had I been brought back because I had promised him that I would. Ellis and Moira had brought me back to join the Resistance and fight in the war against the fusions, a role only I could fill since I had been the one who killed Verdana. But, Ellis and Moira couldn't do what they did to everyone. Not every body could be retrieved, not every life could be brought back, and if Ellis and Moira could do such a thing, I knew they would, reuniting lost souls with their loved ones that were still trapped in this nightmare, proving that there was light in this darkness – a real Arceus, when no one had a reason to believe in anything.

But, if I had been too far gone to be saved, what would Ellis and Moira have done? Would they have brought someone else back? I had killed Verdana, but why had that convinced them to resurrect me? I knew how fusions worked, or, at the least the ones I faced down in Enfer City. Up here, though, other types of fusions had surfaced, some worse than anything I had ever thought would rear its ugly head during my stay in Enfer.

"Blaze?"

I looked at Blaziken, who stared ahead, and I followed her eyesight. Deryn approached us from the wide stairway that connected the hangar to the vault, still dressed in her black captain uniform. The workers who crossed her stopped to salute. She acknowledged them with a boyish smile that suited her rank, sharp blue eyes glinting in the overhead light.

"Never knew I'd find you down here," she said when she reached us, where she sat against the wall beside me. She took off her hat and ran her fingers through her blonde-colored hair, barely shifting it out of its short, tucked position, reminding me of those lone wolf heroines in urban fantasy novels. Not afraid to challenge a man's masculinity, but still feminine enough to wear a skirt and wear it well – and the black pants of her uniform didn't throw off that impression whatsoever. "Drew told me about your story, your resurrection and all that. Barking fascinating, I say." She met my eyes. "You nervous about the mission?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Aye, I'm a wee bit scared myself." She looked at the Monoliths. "Big ships, the Monoliths, and beautiful, but I have to admit that that won't stop them from going down like any other hunk of metal. Besides, I've flown on planes since I was a wean. Mum was a big flier, a hobby of hers, and she took me with her whenever she flew around on the plane we had out back. I remember being scared, but the more time I spent up in the air, the more I realized how daft those fears were. If I crash and that Big Pokemon In the Great Beyond wants to take me, then let him take me. Least I get to spend more time in the air."

I chuckled. "How'd you end up here? In the military, I mean."

"Hard to say. I got in young, and here I am. I just wanted to save the world, be one of those heroes other weans read about in comic books, and maybe fly a bit while I'm at it. Never thought I'd be facing these fusion pokemon, though, or see all this barking damage they've caused. Like operators." Deryn frowned. "I barking hate operators. Creepy things, those are. They don't bite you, no, they barking screw with your mind 'til you can't tell what's real and what's not. I didn't take this war to be such a dark age until those things came along. I once heard a story of a small group of soldiers and how they were patrolling the grounds of an abandoned school, four years back. They were looking for survivors, and then they were never heard from again. An expedition team was sent in to find them. What did they find? All five soldiers, shot to bloody pieces, with one with his handgun still in his hand and a single shot to the head."

"He committed suicide?" I asked.

"Aye, but not before taking out the rest of his team."

"How did they know he did it?"

"Forensics. You know, all that science stuff. But, they also found a note in the soldier's other hand. What did it say? 'I'm sorry that I had to do it.' And there was a rough sketch of an operator, tentacles, faceless, and all. All drawn in the soldier's blood, too. It was obvious what happened then."

"My Arceus..."

A flash of red jumped out of Deryn's pocket, and her haxorus materialized in front of us. She arched a brow at her pokemon. "Haxy! Who told you you could come out?"

Her haxorus growled in retort and curled up beside her. She sighed and scratched its head. It purred, but still kept its eyes ahead, alert.

"Haxorus here isn't fond of operators, either," Deryn said. "One mention of 'em and he comes rushing out thinking there's a battle to be fought. Don't blame him. He liked my mum, where I first got him when he was still an axew." Her eyes darkened. "He thought the world stopped spinning, too, when we got the news an operator killed her."

My eyes widened.

But, before I could say anything, a burly man in uniform similar to Deryn's approached us. He saluted at Deryn, his thick eyebrows furrowed. "General," he said, "we've finished packing and are ready to board."

"About barking time." Deryn stood up, Haxorus right behind her. She put her hat back on, smirked, and reached out her hand to me. "Ready to fly?"

I looked at her. Determination, justice, leadership, a myriad of emotions swam in her eyes, guided by not only the will to end this, but the will to avenge those lost.

_I was the lucky one._

_But I won't be the only one._

I smiled, nodded, and grabbed her hand.

* * *

The inside of the Monoliths – or, at least the one I boarded with Deryn, Drew, Max, Lionel, Dawn, and Paul – consisted mostly of a labyrinth of large and thin hallways connected through staircases and secret tunnels, in which many of the hallways broke off into staying rooms fit with windows and accommodations needed for long trips. The pipes that made up the walls, which flashed with a coppery hue, served as safe passageways for the smaller pokemon that were assigned to carry messages across the ship in case something obstructed the speakers.

Soldiers and their pokemon were stationed at various points along the Monolith, including within the ship's hangar-like area, where numerous amounts of vehicles were parked, prepared to drop from the ship and onto the ground for when we reached the battlefield. Others were positioned at the guns and cannons that lined the ship's sides, while the two large cannons that jutted out of the ship's front were controlled through the cockpit area.

Speaking of which, the cockpit area was a large room lined with dozens of computers and control consoles, while a large holographic screen opened up from a platform in the center. The windshield, wide enough to give a good view of the hangar's door and the Monolith beside us, was covered in programs that detailed the statuses of different parts of the ship, as if the windshield was a computer's desktop by itself. Scientists, pilots, and their pokemon, seated at the computers and control consoles, acknowledged Deryn with nods when she led me and the others into the cockpit.

"We ready for takeoff?" Deryn asked.

"Aye, General," said the burly man from before, who stood right in front of the windshield, examining the programs displayed across its screen. "Say the word."

I looked at Drew, who nodded.

Deryn smiled and scratched Haxorus under his chin. "Bring me that sky."

The floor beneath me vibrated. I didn't know whether it was from the Monolith, its engines roaring to life, or the hangar's large door, which slowly rose, shaking the walls, revealing the outside world; the black sky above, the ocean far below, the jagged sides of the neighboring cliffs, and the horizon. Hundreds of large propellers facing various directions came out of the sides of the ship, all beginning to turn. With another jolt, that world grew closer, as the Monolith moved forward, a colossus that edged over the decline without so much as a break in its balanced stance. We moved further and further, until one last jolt signaled the Monolith's detachment from the hangar's floor in the cliff's side. Then, we were in the air.

We climbed higher, eventually turning until we faced the cliff we had emerged from. It wasn't long before the hangar, the cliff, the land and the dead forest it all expanded into, grew small enough to mirror the makeshift pieces of a board game. The other two Monoliths followed beside us. Beyond the second Monolith's windshield, I could see the shape of the general that led it. He acknowledged us with a thumbs-up. Deryn returned the gesture with a tip of her hat.

"Wow!" Dawn said, looking out the windshield. "Hey, is that a survivor sanctuary?"

I followed her eyes. Below, right beside the edge of the dead forest, dozens of humans and pokemon emerged from the vaults installed into the ground. They pointed at the Monoliths – at us – following us as far as they could, yelling out their wishes of good luck, waving their arms with cheer and excitement, their emotions as obvious as the sky. Children mimicked the movements of planes with their arms, their eyes bright with fascination. First-stage pokemon bounced at their heels. I looked further, seeing waves of more humans and pokemon gathering together from other survivor sanctuaries, all flourishing with hope, with a light I hadn't seen much of since I first woke up in this nightmare.

_They all know where we're going. They all know what we're going to do._

Deryn came up to my side. "It's been a long time since any of them had a reason to believe in something." She looked at me, eyes warm. "We're their reason to believe now."

I smiled.

Deryn looked back at the crew. "You hear that? Let's not let them down!"

* * *

"This is amazing," I said, when Drew and I had slipped out of the cockpit and into one of the hallways an hour later, in which we were still hours away from Johto. I looked up at the lights installed into the ceiling, stretching down the hallway, illuminating the copper hues of the walls. Voices echoed up to us from down the hallway – soldiers passing commands and engineers barking orders to their pokemon – and I wouldn't be surprised if voices from the lower levels had reached our ears through the pipes, a vibration that eventually crossed us with time.

Drew kissed my forehead. "Definitely the coolest thing I've seen so far. Apart from what Ellis and Moira did for you."

"Well-"

"It's fascinating. I didn't even know it was possible."

"Neither did I," I said, smiling at him. The more I thought about it, the more I was also amazed on how I stood there now, when I should've been dead and gone. I hadn't contacted Ellis and Moira much since I first reached the Hoenn Resistance HQ. I hoped they were okay, though I had no doubts that they were.

"And you came back perfect." Drew grinned at me, and, before I could blink, he pushed me up against the wall, his mouth on mine.

"Drew!" I managed to say before he kissed me again. I didn't want to push him away, but I also knew that the middle of the Monolith wasn't the greatest place to make out.

"Just making up for what Paul ruined earlier," Drew said, a smirk on his face. "Remind me to fire him later."

I rolled my eyes. "We have our own staying rooms, you know?"

"Too far."

Drew kissed my neck.

"You're not" – I gasped and bit back a moan – "being the militant soldier you're supposed to be."

"Oh please. Even General Deryn Abraham knows how to crack a joke."

He had a point about that, but that still didn't mean public displays of affection didn't break any rules on Monolith regulations.

We stopped when the door into the cockpit opened. Paul stepped out, saw the both of us, and frowned. "Seriously, boss, _seriously_?"

"Forget firing him," Drew hissed to me, loud enough for Paul to hear, "I'm killing him myself."

"Like to see you try, boss."

I laughed and released myself from Drew's grip.

Then, the sirens went off.

I jumped in place. The lights above flashed red; the eerie call of the alarms echoed down the hallway and rushed up the pipes. Drew and Paul ran back into the cockpit. I followed – and saw Deryn hissing multiple curses at the holographic display in the center of the room. The display mirrored a radar, showing a large red blob heading toward the Monolith. Programs across the ship's windshield showed the same thing, bright against the red lights of the sirens, which flashed off its surface like blades.

"What's happening?" Drew asked.

"Something big's heading toward us!" a scientist called from the side of the room.

"It's getting closer!" another one said.

I ran to the windshield and looked out into the distance. Beyond the black-colored clouds, a large wave of gray flew toward us, stretching across the sky. Fog? I couldn't tell, but the closer it came, the more red dots I could see scattered amongst the wave, until I realized what they were – and what approached us.

Eyes. The eyes of fusions.

"Harpies!" a scientist yelled. "At least two hundred of them!"

"Barking spinarak!" Deryn cursed. She rushed over to a nearby console, grabbed the microphone hooked to its side, and spoke into it, her voice reaching in from the hallway outside and probably from the rest of the Monolith: "We've got harpies, and loads of 'em! Get those barking cannons ready!" She dropped the microphone and glared at the approaching fog. "I figured that Arbiter Corp knew we were coming."

As the wave of winged fusions grew closer, their roars grew louder. They flew in formation, seeming to surround something. Something big, by the way they were spread out.

"Oh my Arceus..." The pilot next to me swallowed, his face pale. "The Leviathan."

Out of the wave of harpies, a large shape emerged, flying on its own wide wings, claws jutting out of their tips. Feathers, ruffled and stained with blood, covered its dragon-like body, ripped away in some places to make room for scales and spikes. Its long neck curled, horned jaw opening up to let out a roar that blocked out the harpies' calls, multiple tails whipping around like flails.

"Holy shit," Paul said, standing right beside me, "that's..."

I swallowed. "Lugia."

Lugia – the Leviathan – stopped in midair, hovering, while the harpies flew forward toward the Monoliths. "_You will fall beneath the storm_," Lugia said, its telepathic voice booming through the air, corrupted by the Chimera Virus, "_as the hour of your end has come!_"

"Fire those barking cannons!" Deryn shouted.

The Monolith shook, as the two large cannons that protruded from its front fired. The blast struck the harpies, sending dozens of them sprawling toward the ground. But, the more they fell, the more they came. The other two Monoliths fired as well, the cannons and guns along their sides shooting at the stray groups of harpies that headed toward their backs.

Another jolt. More sirens went off. The radar in the holographic display shifted to a diagram of the ship, with sections of its sides flashing red.

"General!" A scientist looked at Deryn. "Groups of harpies have made impact! They're coming into the ship from the sides!" He looked back at his computer screen. "And they've carried in other types of fusions!"

"Get some soldiers down there!" Deryn said. She revealed a handgun holstered in her jacket. "I'm not going to let those barking fusions dirty up my ship!"

Pieces of the back wall lifted up, revealing a large array of guns, knives, and what looked like bottles of the Virus cure. Drew, Dawn, Lionel, and Paul, made their way to it, arming themselves with weapons and the cure, while Max stayed behind to monitor the fight with the Leviathan. The Monolith shook again and again. I stumbled while I made my way to Drew.

Paul looked back at me and tossed a handgun in my direction. "Perfect time to learn," he said, and he rushed out the door with Dawn and Lionel.

Drew lagged behind, met my eyes, opened his mouth-

"Let's go," I said, pushing a magazine into the gun.

Drew closed his mouth, nodded, and led the way.

* * *

Chaos had erupted within the lower levels of the Monolith. Soldiers and pokemon, some wounded and some dead, lay against the walls and were spread out around the floor, while others fired endlessly into clouds of steam and smoke, aiming at red eyes that hovered amidst the obscurity. Fire reached out from the corners ahead, signaling where fusions had broken in from. The lights above flashed on and off, some torn out of their containers and hanging limply in the air, their wires sparking against the floor.

Paul and Dawn had run off down one hallway, already shooting at pieces of the wall that seemed to move, revealing rogue fusions from beneath their camouflaged covers. Lionel jumped in to help a small group of soldiers take down three lashers, whose tongues whipped around, grabbing soldiers and pokemon by their legs and throwing them out the very hole they'd come in from.

Drew and I emerged into a cafeteria room further within the level. The lights had been cut, so our only source of light were the open freezers behind the counter, which painted everything in an eerie blue glow. At the sound of a growl, Drew wheeled around and fired at a scout fusion that jumped out from behind a table. The fusion fell to the floor, blood matting its fur, but it rushed toward Drew again just as fast, until Drew's flygon flew in from the hallway and slammed his tail against the fusion, sending it across the room. It didn't get up again. When another scout fusion ran into the room from the other hallway, I fired. The bullet sunk into its shoulder, blowing away flesh and bone, and Drew finished it with a shot to the head before it got up again.

A roar reached us from down the other hallway.

"Go," I said to Drew. "I got your back."

He nodded and ran toward the sound, his flygon right behind him, while Blaziken and I lingered behind to ensure any fusions wouldn't follow us. With the lights gone, darkness also covered this hallway, filling in the staying rooms it opened up into. It was silent, too. Save for the vibrations of the battle on the near levels, or the roars of the Leviathan outside, muffled by the ship's walls, the area seemed barren, though the lack of bodies and mishap implied that the crew's occupancy hadn't stretched this far into the ship in the first place.

The communication device in my ear fizzled with life. Deryn's voice came in, faint, but there: "May? Can you hear me?"

"Yeah," I whispered into it, keeping my eyes head. "Drew and I got two scout fusions down here, but not much else. I don't think they've made it this far into the ship yet."

"Good," Deryn said. "Make sure it stays that way."

"Roger."

The bark of a gun resounded from up the hallway. Drew had obviously got whatever had caused that earlier roar. I let out a sigh of relief, and I turned to try to find Drew's shape within the darkness.

A flash of white appeared up ahead, going between the intersection's corners.

I arched a brow. "Drew?"

No response.

I swallowed and moved forward, gun ready and Blaziken right behind me.

"Drew-"

The communication device in my ear roared with audio distortions. I reared back, pulled the thing out of my ear, and threw it to the ground. I closed my eyes, my head throbbing from the sound.

I opened my eyes.

And I wasn't in the Monolith anymore.

My eyes widened. I looked around. I was in a...forest? Dozens of trees, covered in moss and leaves, stretched as far as I could see, while the faint light of morning bled in from the trees' canopies. The ground beneath me, soft with the padding of dirt, contradicted the hard floor I'd just felt on the Monolith. _How the hell did I get here_? I looked behind me, but Blaziken was nowhere to be seen, and neither was Drew. The forest was silent; there were no sounds of pokemon, no nearby people, no running streams or rustling leaves. The air was cold, scentless and dead, as if there was no breeze whatsoever.

I opened my mouth, to call out for someone, and I looked up.

Bodies. Human bodies. Women and children. Dozens of them. They hung from the tree branches all around me, nooses tied around their necks. Some had been skinned, their blood still dripping from the exposed muscles, while others only had half their flesh missing. A child – a young girl – slowly turned toward me, swaying on her noose to a nonexistent wind. She looked at me, half of her face skinned off, with her one intact eye opened wide with shock.

I fell to the ground, as she stared at me. I wanted to scream, but nothing came out of my mouth. Bile crawled up my throat. The bodies – the dozens of bodies – all swayed to face me, painting the ground red with their blood.

Beyond the bushes, beyond all of it, an operator stared at me.

I looked at it, at its patched flesh, its pale nonexistent face, and the tentacles that sprouted from its back, curling and uncurling, as thin as the branches to a dead tree. It stood there, watching me, doing nothing else, as if knowing how my heart hammered against my chest, how bile climbed up my throat, how much I wanted to scream and run as far as I could and get away from the horror scene that played out in the trees above me. It waited for me to break down, for me to beg for it to rip me to pieces just to escape.

Because this was all a hallucination. A memory.

I stood up, swallowed back the bile, aimed the gun in my hand, and fired at the operator.

With a banshee-like scream, the forest disappeared in a bright flash, taking the bodies, the blood, and the stares with it. I was back on the Monolith, with the hallway just as dark and the background just as silent. All alone, as my bullet struck the outer wall, targeted at something that hadn't been there to begin with.

"Blaze?"

I turned to Blaziken. She eyed my gun, then at the wall I'd fired at, her brow arched. She hadn't seen the hallucination I'd just experienced, probably wondering why I had stopped in the middle of the hallway, staring up at the ceiling with my mouth open in a silent scream. I shook my head and gestured at her to forget it. We had to find where that op-

Her eyes widened at something behind me. "Blaze!"

Before I could turn, something wrapped around my throat. I choked and dropped my gun, while another tentacle, as white as light, whipped around and struck Blaziken. She flew across the hallway, crashing into the door of the cafeteria we'd come in from. I opened my mouth, to call her name, but just like before, I couldn't get the words out. The tentacle that held me curled, until I faced the operator.

I shut my eyes right before I looked at it.

_Don't look at it_, my mind said, over and over. _Whatever you do, don't look at it._

The tentacle tightened its grip and forced my eyes open. I looked into the operator's nonexistent face.

It tilted its head at me. Its voice, the voice of women and children with a demonic lead, filled the air: "_Why do you not obey?"_

Its grip was too tight. I struggled against its hold.

The operator lifted me higher. "_You...will...obey!"_

It threw me across the hallway. I hit the wall and pain shot through my back. The operator came closer, one step after another, as if it had no reason to rush, tentacles whipping around behind it. I couldn't move. Gunshots echoed from ahead; more fusions had come and stopped Drew from reaching me. Blaziken was knocked out, sprawled out across the cafeteria's broken door. It was just me and the operator. I looked at it again.

Something changed.

I didn't know what. I didn't know how. But I felt it. I understood – I understood the operator. I knew why it was doing this and what it planned to do, as if everything about the operator's history displayed itself in front of my eyes, recording itself in my brain, decoding the messages it had already sent out to the other fusions on the Monolith, which told them about the presences of humans down here. I witnessed the thoughts of those fusions. I felt the blood lust in the scouts that stalked around on the near levels, the meaning of the growls they gave one another, letting each other know about the six soldiers that hid behind the nearby wall, waiting to ambush them. I could map out their movements along the ceiling. I felt the hatred stored within the Leviathan, and the pain it felt when a blast from one of the Monolith's cannons impacted its side. I heard the roar – the roar of Kruismara – that echoed throughout the fusions, as if he stood right beside me, his voice a command to kill everyone on board the Monoliths and stop them from reaching Emerald Harbor. Far below on the ground I heard the hisses of behemoths, fighting over a scrap of flesh, arguing over who had really killed the human it had belonged to, and on the other side of the world I felt the sticky blood that poured from the wounds of a linebacker shot to death by the stray survivors it had just tried to kill.

I understood. I felt. I understood and felt it all. All of them.

The operator stopped, towering over me. It tilted its head again, its tentacles shrinking into its back. It stood there and stared at me, and even as I lay there it didn't do anything else. It didn't finish me. It didn't do anything, as if waiting for a command.

A gun barked – and the operator fell to the ground, a clear shot through its head.

I blinked and leaned forward. The pain was gone, as if it had never been there. I looked at the wall across from me, into its reflective surface.

My irises were red.

"May!"

Drew. He rushed toward me and dropped to his knees.

"Are you alright?" he asked, breathing heavily.

I stared at him. Didn't he see my eyes? But, he looked at me, straight at me, and he said nothing. He lifted me up, acknowledging my blaziken with a nod when she approached from the other side to help balance me.

I looked back at the reflective wall.

My irises were blue again.

* * *

"We chased that barking thing off," Deryn told me when Drew and I had reached the cockpit – and noticed that the Leviathan was gone. "It also took the rest of its mates with it. But I don't think that'll be the last we see of any of 'em. Still, though, the Monoliths didn't take too much damage from the attack...though we still lost some good men."

The room grew silent at that. I looked around, saw Dawn, Max, Lionel, and Paul gathered together in the corner, and felt a sense of relief that at least they had made it through. However...

"Are we going to do anything for the ones we lost?" I asked.

"Aye," Deryn said. "Something worthy of the bravest people you could ever meet, but we don't have a lot of time 'til we reach Emerald Harbor." She looked out the windshield. "We have to tend to the wounded and fix what we can, because I don't think this attack was random. The Arbiter Corporation is expecting our arrival, so there's probably going to be a welcoming party on the battlefield. We'll honor those lost with fireworks – by blowing those barking towers up and bringing this war to an end!"

The crew saluted and cheered. Outside, the other two Monoliths followed our movements, falling back into formation.

I closed my eyes, and I tried to listen. But, I couldn't hear the things I heard before. The voices of the fusions, the plans they built in their heads, or the growls of Kruismara that determined everything. I couldn't understand it, I couldn't hear it, I couldn't feel it – all those sensations, that connection, were gone as fast as they had arrived.

"May?"

I met Drew's eyes.

"Are you alright?" he asked. "Are you sure that operator didn't hurt you?"

"I'm fine."

_I think._

But when I looked at the nearby wall, at my reflection, my eyes were as blue as they'd always been.


	21. Occam's Razor

**-Soledad-**

It had taken a few hours to fly to the Johto region, but the ship held up well during the trip. Another sign of Ratchet's genius, when it came to engineering and repairing. When I reached Azalea Town, which was as barren and skeletal as the rest of them, I looked at the dead trees that spread out beyond the town's southern gate. Smoke rose in the distance and accumulated into black juggernauts, joining the dark sky, seeming to reach up from the ocean. The echoes of gunshots and roars filled the air, as if an entire war played out in the distant part of my thoughts. Loud, booming, but there, only miles away from me. I pushed the lever. The ship flew forward.

When Ratchet had said that Arbiter Corp had been expecting the military's attack on the dish towers, he hadn't been kidding.

Amidst the forest and the ocean, a large gap of land – a mixture of sand and tree stumps – served as the battlefield between hundreds of fusions and military soldiers. In the ocean, massive watercrafts moved past their burning and sinking brethren, firing cannons and machine guns toward the fusion fleets that headed in to engage with the boats of soldiers and regular pokemon touching shore. Jets soared through the air, dropping bombs on groups of fusions, the bellows of their engines slicing through the drums of war, while dropships dispatched tanks and jeeps of soldiers along the battlefield, other dropships joining the aerial combat with the harpies above it all. Bodies of fusions, regular pokemon, and soldiers covered the ground, spilling out into the ocean.

My eyes followed the fusions' paths, tracing back to where they charged from. I saw the shape of a tower, settled somewhat into the dead trees. Pieces of it seemed to go missing, flickering in and out of reality, evidence of a cloaking device that'd been cut off. With its satellite-like dish tilted into the air, it was as large as a skyscraper.

Emerald Harbor.

Missiles from the watercrafts and jets shot toward Emerald Harbor, but they all exploded against a half-sphere-shaped layer of purple-white that surrounded the tower, the force of the attacks sending vibrations across the layer's surface. The layer disappeared, as if leaving Emerald Harbor exposed, but once another missile headed toward it, the layer appeared again, blocked the hit, and protected the tower – a force field. It was obvious that this battle had been going on for a while with no avail on our end; even with the amount of bodies I could see, Emerald Harbor looked like it hadn't taken an ounce of damage apart from its broken cloaking device. Soldiers and pokemon who tried to approach it on ground were blocked by the fusions who emerged from it, crossing through the shield via small gaps in the surface that traced the ground around the tower, only visible when the shield was exposed after an attack.

If I wanted to get in, it looked like I'd have to take the same route.

I fell from the chair when my ship reared to one side, a siren flashing, painting everything in red. Feeling a cold wind slash across my face, I looked – and saw a gaping hole where the door had once been. Whether it had been from a stray missile or a fusion attack I didn't know. I grabbed the controls, but the ship only veered downward, unbalanced on its one remaining wing, as it headed toward the ocean.

_Fuck!_

I dove for the floor and prepared for a crash landing.

Another jolt, which almost sent me flying toward the dashboard. Water splashed across the windshield and poured in through the hole. When the ship finally stilled and the water level stopped just below my waist, I let out the breath trapped in my chest, grabbed the dashboard, and stood up. Droplets dripped down my armored legs. The noises of the battlefield sounded closer than before, but, to my luck, another missile didn't come to finish the job, nor did a fusion poke its ugly head into the hole.

Before something could change that, I made my way to the small container of guns and ammo toward the ship's corner. Brushing wet, reddish bangs from my face, I grabbed a rifle and hooked it on my back. I attached packs of ammo and knives to my belt and holstered another handgun to my thigh, beneath the small cape that covered it, replacing any old weapons I had with new ones.

Alistair only deserved the best, after all.

I looked toward the dashboard, where that picture of Drew, May, Harley, and I had only fallen on its front during the crash. I walked over and grabbed it, the water stirring beneath my steps. For a second, I closed my eyes, if only to remind myself that I was that same woman in the picture.

_Alistair needs to get what he deserved...but save Malcolm first._

I put the picture into my pocket and climbed out of the ship's hole.

I smelled gunpowder, blood, and sweat as soon as I stepped out onto the beach. While my ship had buried itself into the sand a few feet beneath the water, the tide had begun to recede, carrying the body of a dead fusion with it. Its claw snagged on my boot and stayed it. Its red eyes were open toward the sky, its jaw moist with blood. I kicked it away and faced the battlefield.

Each command, each growl, each footstep, each firing, each death, they all gathered together, creating a chorus that shook the ground beneath me. When the ground actually jolted and made me stumble, I looked toward the dead trees – and saw a bipedal fusion almost as large as Kruismara step out into the open, impaling a jeep full of soldiers in its scythe-like hand, creating dust clouds with each massive step. It roared and shook the ground even further.

A colossus.

Colossi were rare fusions, though there was a higher chance of being killed by one of them than by Kruismara's hand. Mutated as they were, it was hard to distinguish what other pokemon they consisted of, but the attributes of kabutops and carracosta were usually present, with their bluish skin, a large shell on their back, scythe-like claws, and an armored head with spiked ends. Despite their size and bulky shape, they weren't invincible, as two missiles from a jet struck the colossus in the chest, causing it to step back, pieces of its armor blown off.

Two more loud roars shook the ground, and two more colossi emerged from the dead forest, enclosing on the battlefield.

_If I'm going to move, now would be a good time!_

I grabbed Charizard's pokeball, released him, and climbed onto his back.

"Don't stop," I said to him, pointing to Emerald Harbor. "We might not last long if you do."

Charizard eyed the colossi and the rest of the war that waged in front of us. His face paled, but he took off anyway, heading toward Emerald Harbor, staying low to the ground so we wouldn't attract the attention of the harpies above. I leaned into him, to provide the least resistance against the wind.

Soldiers, their pokemon, and fusions passed by us in outlined blurs. A jeep exploded in front of us, the heat brushing my face, and Charizard reared to the side, barely dodging the claws of the behemoth that had destroyed it. We flew past groups of scout fusions that engaged soldiers, their growls loud then gone in the blink of an eye, and maneuvered over a series of trenches that hid regular pokemon, who glanced at us with shock before they disappeared behind us. A colossus approached, pounding the ground with each step.

Charizard narrowed his eyes.

The colossus intercepted our path, though it was oblivious to our presence, with us probably being a mere dot amongst a background full of them. But its wide legs were still barriers and the span of its claws were huge; the last thing I wanted was to be stepped on. With a growl, Charizard sped forward. We moved around the colossus, circling the thigh of its leg. As that leg moved forward, Charizard veered to the right and left, moving around the other thigh. The colossus's scythe slumped down when we came through, but Charizard barrel-rolled out of its way, almost throwing me off in the process.

As the colossus grew distant, we grew closer to Emerald Harbor, the tower looming over us like a colossus of its own.

"We have to time this right!" I said to Charizard, just loud enough for him to hear over the sounds of the battle. "We can't get through that shield unless fusions come out of it! That's the only time it's open!"

Groups of fusions emerged from Emerald Harbor's open doorway, heading toward the force field to engage with the soldiers gathering on the other side. I patted Charizard's neck. He increased his speed, eyes still narrowed, his muscles tense beneath me, and the fire at the tip of his tail blazing with a blue-white color. I leaned further into him, looking between his horns.

"Steady!" I said.

_Closer..._

_Closer..._

_Just a little bit further!_

The force field opened, a small gap that allowed the fusions to pass through. We flew over them – and beyond the force field.

Charizard tried to rear back once we entered, but his speed was too much. He managed to dive toward the ground before we crashed into the wall of the tower. I lost my grip on him on impact, hit the ground, and rolled onto my back.

I bit back a groan, pushing myself up a minute later, and I saw Charizard half buried into the dirt a few feet away from me. He whimpered, his tail flame dimming. I made my way over to him, kneeled, and put a hand on his neck. He tried to lift his head. I looked up when a missile struck the force field, its blast so close and loud that it blinded me for a second. Vibrations spread across the shield's surface. I looked back at Charizard.

"You did it, Charizard. We're in." I grabbed his pokeball from my belt and sent him inside. "This is my battle, though. Get some rest. I'll take it from here."

I stood and watched the battle. No one seemed to notice that I'd gotten in, not even the fusions that guarded the force field from outside. Though my top priority was saving Malcolm...

_If I can, I'll find a way to shut off this force field, too, guys._

I ran into the tower's open doorway, and the war soon disappeared behind the tower's white, clean walls.

* * *

On the inside, Emerald Harbor consisted of different hallways, laboratories, cafeterias, control rooms, staircases, and accommodation and meeting rooms. If there would have ever been another moment where I regretted not taking my helmet with me, it was now. Blueprints of the towers had been included when I had installed the information I'd retrieved from that Arbiter Corp campsite into the helmet's database. I didn't have the helmet anymore. Ergo, I had no idea where the hell I was going.

But I didn't stop. Malcolm was somewhere in here, if Alistair hadn't lied. Despite how much I wanted to wrap my fingers around Alistair's neck, I hoped he had a ounce of good left in him to at least be truthful about some things – even if it was all for a sadistic purpose.

I slit the throats of any scout fusions that patrolled the hallways before they could notice me and alert the rest of the team. Blood drenched my knives by the time I finally crossed a hallway that led into a large room. The tiled floor vibrated with the movements of a massive generator to the room's side, at least a mile down and stretching a mile across. Catwalks lined its edges and connected above it, linked through a series of doors that sat along the circular wall. Its bright glow, plus the overhead lights, whitened the room to where it almost hurt to stare at the floor. The drone of its moving machinery was low, but still there, and it blocked out many of the sounds of the battle outside that had somehow found their way in. Even though a railing lined the edge of the floor's decline into the generator, I stayed far from it, not wanting to imagine what said machinery down their could do to you if they made contact.

If this wasn't the focal point for Emerald Harbor, I didn't want to know what was.

To the other side of me, multiple garage-like doors lay shut. Ahead, a metal staircase led into a control room, filled with computers and a doorway leading somewhere else. It was encased in glass, in which the glass extended and served as the front windows for a myriad of rooms and hallways on the next floor. All for observing purposes, obviously, for people who also didn't want to be so close to the generator when they looked at it.

In the control room, I saw a human figure talking to someone on a large screen. A human figure with blond hair, a black trench coat, and a sense of arrogance amongst his posture.

I clenched my hand into a fist. "_Alistair_!"

Though the glass probably muffled my voice, Alistair heard me anyway. He turned, his red eyes flashing, and he smirked. He mumbled something to the person on the screen and the image cut out. Then, he emerged from the room, walking down the staircase, eyes never leaving me.

"Soledad!" he said. "What a surprise! I thought you wouldn't be able to find your way in here, since no one else has seemed to yet. Still..." He frowned. "If I had known you were really coming, I would've cleaned up a little and made some of my famous three-bean casserole. You haven't lived 'til you tried my three-bean casserole, let me tell you!"

"Where's Malcolm?"

Alistair hummed. "Malcolm? Malcolm. Malcolm, Malcolm, Malcolm...About yay high? Purple-red hair? Green eyes?"

I snarled. "_Where is he?"_

"Ooh, protective." Alistair grinned. "You know what? I like you. I made a few bets that you wouldn't be able to make it this far, yet you did." His brow arched. "I owe a few hundred bucks to some people down by At Hell's End now, but whatever. You really are a good mother when you want to be. Too bad I don't have my own kid, so I can't relate." He pointed his thumb behind him. "Try looking up there."

There was an observing room just above the control one – and Malcolm was in it.

"Mommy!" he yelled.

Even with the glass in the way, I heard him loud and clear. He beat against the glass, but to no avail, his eyes glistening with fresh tears. Beside him, an operator stood still, only turning its head to acknowledge him when he tried to run to the door in the back – and get blocked off by the three scout fusions that guarded it. They didn't touch him, though, following Alistair's commands over the Hivemind.

"Let him go!" I hissed.

Alistair snorted. "And what? Ruin all the fun? Yeah, I wanted to see how much the great Artemis would be willing to do to save one of the things that really mattered to her, but I also brought you here to offer a little...proposition." He grinned again. "Undoubtedly you saw all that ruckus outside. I'm guessing you were the one who started it, with all that info you stole at the camp you destroyed. The towers wouldn't be known about if it hadn't been for you, and Jericho and the rest of the council is getting nervous over the military's obvious plan to destroy Kruismara and break the Hivemind. They wanted me to kill you as soon as possible, but the damage has already been done, so I thought I might as well liven up the game a little.

"To tell the truth, we know about the Resistance," he said, walking toward me. "We haven't known about them for long, but we know about them, and we know that right now a group of them – which one was it? The Hoenn Resistance, I think? – is coming this way to try and destroy Emerald Harbor. From what I've heard about the members of the Hoenn Resistance, you have some sort of connection to them, right? You were a member once yourself." He stopped. "Now, which one was it that you were particularly close to? Drew Trandafir? Ah, yeah, Drew Trandafir, the leader for the Hoenn Resistance."

I firmed my jaw, not surprised that Arbiter Corp knew about me, the Resistance, and about the military's plan to defeat the fusion army by getting rid of Kruismara, the head to the Hivemind that maintained all order amongst the fusion fleets.

But, Alistair's mention of Drew made my stomach jump.

"Gotta love those operators," Alistair said. "Encounter one, or just continue on with your daily life with no idea that one's following you, and all your secrets can be passed around the world in a matter of minutes through the Hivemind. Huh. Maybe we should've called them 'gossipers'...No matter." He looked at me. "I know now that that Drew fellow means a lot to you, a connection to your past that you care about just as much as you care about Mal up there. So, I'm willing to make a trade."

I paused. "A trade?"

"Indeed. A life for a life, if you want to be cliché." He walked closer to me. "Drew Trandafir is probably going to be the one in here with his little squadron trying to blow this place up, or whatever plan they have. But, if he falls, who knows what'll happen to the Resistance as a whole? Having the military up our asses is annoying enough, but getting rid of the Resistance will probably ease Jericho's tension a bit.

"Long story short, I'm hiring you, _Artemis_." He smirked. "Kill Drew Trandafir, and Malcolm is all yours."

I narrowed my eyes. "No."

"No?" Alistair tilted his head. "What happened to being Artemis to protect Malcolm? Don't tell me you ditched that idea already! I was just getting fond of it!"

He snapped his fingers. The operator beside Malcolm grabbed him in its elongated arms, holding him in place as a fusion scout approached him, fangs bared and dripping with saliva.

"Mommy!" Malcolm cried out.

"A life for a life," Alistair repeated. "If you don't want to trade, I might as well keep the money I got."

"Why do you want me to do it?" I asked, struggling to get the words out.

"Well, yeah, I could kill Drew myself just as easily. But, like I said, I like you. On one hand, you're Soledad; strong, powerful, independent, and willing to sacrifice yourself to save a best friend. On the other hand, you're Artemis, a cold-blooded murderer who'll shed the blood of her best friend if it meant her son was spared. I want to see how much more you'll do. I want to know which one you truly are. A life for a life. Kill Drew, and save Malcolm. Or let Drew live, and see your precious son ripped apart before your very eyes."

I looked between Alistair and Malcolm. I wanted to push Alistair out of the way, free Malcolm, and get away from this place.

But...one simple mental command from Alistair, and Malcolm would be gone.

"Make your choice now." Alistair chuckled. "None of us have got all day."


	22. Sound the Bugle

**-May-**

"Thirty minutes until we reach Emerald Harbor, General."

I opened my eyes at the voice. A pilot looked up from his computer and stared at Deryn, who stood with Drew and the rest of the members of the Hoenn Resistance by the holographic display in the center of the Monolith's cockpit. I figured I must've dozed off, and I stood up against the wall to look out the windshield, beyond the other two Monoliths that flew beside us. The dead forests and barren, rocky areas of the Hoenn region had shifted to the vast landmass that consisted both Johto and Kanto, which were linked through a mountain range that also divided the regions' official boundaries. With Mount Silver on the far horizon, I looked down and saw the ocean beneath the Monolith, as dark as ink.

I'd been asleep for a few hours, obviously, and, as the pilot had said, Emerald Harbor wasn't too far off. If I listened closely, I swore I could hear the faint sounds of cannon fire over the ship's engines, whether they were really there or my mind just mimicked sounds I expected to hear soon. After all, I had no doubt that Deryn was right – Arbiter Corp foresaw our arrival; our earlier encounter with the Leviathan had carved that in stone – and we surely wouldn't be the only soldiers on the battlefield.

I looked back at Deryn, who gestured me over. Then, she turned to Max and asked, "What's the strategy, lad?"

Max nodded. He typed something into the keyboard installed into the display's platform, and the blueprints for Emerald Harbor came up. With the push of another key, a section of the blueprint flashed: a large room, with what looked like a machine serving as some sort of core to the entire tower, big enough to be its own structure. "This is the generator that powers Emerald Harbor," Max said, pointing at the machine. "It's also what provides Emerald Harbor's contribution to the shield that protects Kruismara. Taking out this generator will shut off that portion and will also destroy the tower."

Paul shifted. "It looks like we'll need something big to take that generator out." He eyed the rest of us. "Alright, who's volunteering to throw them self in?"

Dawn rolled her eyes and looked at Deryn. "Why can't we just blow the tower up with the Monoliths' attacks?"

"There's some sort of force field protecting the tower," a scientist said from a near computer, "or, at least according to these visuals I'm receiving from forces already stationed on the battleground. All outside attacks on the tower have been stopped by this shield."

Lionel frowned. "We'll have to take it out through this generator then. How are we getting in?"

"Some of the fusions that are joining the battle as we speak are coming from Emerald Harbor itself." The scientist looked closer at the images on his computer's screen. "They're coming out of a small gap in the force field that only opens when they need to intercept our troops from getting too close on ground. Our main option is through one of those gaps."

"Then that's the way I'll take my team through," Drew said. "We just need something to distract the fusions coming out so we can get in."

Deryn smirked. "Leave that to me."

Drew nodded. "How are we blowing up the generator? As Paul said, it's probably going to take something big."

"We have three bombs you can use." Deryn looked at Drew. "You'll take these bombs when we reach the battlefield, carry them into Emerald Harbor, set them within the room containing the generator, and get your bums out of there so we can blow that sodding tower sky high."

Paul grunted. "Sounds fun."

"Then it's settled. You have thirty minutes to prepare."

* * *

_Thirty minutes._

I sighed and leaned against the wall, just outside of the cockpit. In thirty minutes, Drew and I – and the rest of the Hoenn Resistance – would finish the attack on Emerald Harbor. This mission had no guarantees; hundreds of guns and the most powerful pokemon didn't change a man's mortality. Even with how all our faith was in the strategy of killing Kruismara and breaking the Hivemind, it only proved that if that plan failed, that if we died, the humane would have no alternatives. They would still continue to fight back, but to what avail? The chance would be gone, the fusions would win, and Verdana's legacy would be fulfilled.

Everything would be gone.

My parents, my pokemon, other parents, other children, other pokemon, other families; other dreams of being pokemon trainers or finding true family or seeing the sun shine on the horizon or hearing the rain fall. The world once known, the memories we all missed. Max, Lionel, Dawn, Paul, and...Drew. Drew, with our hopes of living together and starting a family of our own, with our hopes of laughing at the memories of our rivalry in coordinating and the adventures we had had in Johto, Kanto, and Hoenn, all those years ago, before the fusions took away everything.

Right now, everything depended on me, on _us_, to make sure the fusions didn't win this war, to make sure this mission didn't fail and all those memories wouldn't die off for eternity, to make sure those dreams wouldn't fade, to make sure those true families were found, to make sure that sun shined one day, and to make sure that rain still fell.

The door to the cockpit opened. Max stepped out. He looked at me, and I saw the hesitance in his eyes, the worry that painted his skin white, the fear that skewed his glasses and bent his posture and, in one second, changed him from the adult he'd become through the war back into the seven year old that once traveled by my side. Intelligent and brave, but, at the same time, a little brother who still needed someone to tell him every now and then that things would be alright.

We stared at each other. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. I walked closer, wrapped my arms around him, and held him close. He buried his face into my neck.

The five years I'd been gone – the five years where I'd been dead – came back to me, reminding me of how it had affected Drew, Soledad, and everyone else close to me, including Max. It reminded me that, in thirty minutes, I would throw myself back out there into fusion territory, risking my life, risking the chance that Max would lose his sister all over again, that Drew would become a widower, that my pokemon would be without a trainer and that my parents would lose a daughter like they had five years ago. And, if not me, then the other way around, with me losing something that made me who I was.

But, I had to do this. I had to fight. I had to make sure the ghosts of Enfer didn't stalk the earth in vain. I had to make sure that that rain would still fall on some days and that the sun would shine on the others. I had to make sure that families stuck together, even when mine had been torn apart. I had to make sure those memories would live and that those dreams would never die.

I had to make sure we won this war.

I pulled away from Max. "I have to do this."

He smiled weakly. "You're not going to be alone down there, Sis."

We_ have to make sure this war is won._

I returned Max's smile and kissed his forehead.

"I know."

* * *

"Emerald Harbor is in sight, General!"

Thirty minutes had passed by like thirty seconds. Just as I had held Max close, remembering what I was fighting for, I stood beside him, Drew, Deryn, and the others in front of the cockpit's windshield, as we stared at the vast piece of land between the skeletal trees and rotting stumps of the dead forests south of Azalea Town, clashing with the sands that crawled into the ocean.

Just as expected, hundreds of fusions and soldiers battled amongst trenches and fallen bodies. Jets shot through the air, shooting missiles at the armored chests of fusions that had shells on their backs, scythes for hands, and were large enough to rival Kruismara ("Colossi," Deryn muttered. "Barking brilliant.") Drop ships hovered toward the ground, where they dispatched tanks, jeeps, and groups of soldiers and pokemon, before taking off to engage with the hordes of harpies that battled with other drop ships in the air. Ships in the ocean provided more gunfire; their missiles collided with fusions on ground, with the harpies in the air, with the colossi that impaled tanks and jeeps with their scythes and blasted away trenches with hyper beams, and toward Emerald Harbor, where the missiles exploded against a shield of purple-white – the force field mentioned earlier.

And, as also mentioned earlier, groups of fusions emerged from Emerald Harbor to fight the soldiers approaching the tower's shield. A gap rose in the shield, let them through, and then closed behind them.

The Monoliths pulled in to where they hovered over the ocean, their tips shadowing the beach. The floor shook with the battle, almost knocking me off my feet, and the cannons that protruded from our Monolith fired rounds into one of the colossi that approached the shore. The blast hit the colossus in the chest, covering it in a cloud of smoke and fire, blowing away chunks of its breast plate. It fell back, smashing into the ground, provoking a wave of dirt and sand that covered soldiers and fusions a mile away. Blood gushed from its now open chest. It let out a roar of pain, before it dropped its head back and didn't move again. The other two Monoliths followed suite, sending a couple of other colossi sprawling toward the ground with their missile attacks.

"These barking fusions are getting bigger by the minute!" Deryn said. "But, the bigger they are, the harder they fall." She looked at Drew with sharp blue eyes. "It looks like this might be as close as I can get you, though. We'll provide the backup fire, you just get down to the launch bay, grab a jeep and the bombs, and get to that tower as fast as you can."

Drew saluted. "In case this is the last time we see each other-"

"Save that sodding honor stuff for the after party. That bloody tower isn't going to blow itself up, Trandafir."

Drew met her eyes. He smirked and nodded.

We followed him out the door.

* * *

We climbed down toward the bottom front of the Monolith and emerged into the launch bay. Dozens of soldiers armed themselves with the guns, grenades, and vials of the Virus cure that lined the walls, also grabbing pokeballs from separate compartments that revealed large, powerful pokemon like tyranitar and garchomp. Then, the soldiers and pokemon climbed into the different tanks and jeeps that were on the platform, moving them in front of the bay's hangar-like door that signified the drop radius, ready to be dispatched onto shore. The floor shook with the echoes of the battle outside; the rumbles of the vehicle's engines mixed in, filling the hollow air, in sync with the lights above that flashed in and out with each attack that struck the Monolith's outside surface.

The soldiers and scientists assigning strategies in the corner acknowledged us with salutes and pointed to a jeep already stationed in front of the bay's hangar door – but not before handing Paul and Lionel three white, tube-like objects large enough to require both hands to hold. The bombs. We geared up at the ammo compartments afterward, where we agreed not to release our pokemon until we reached Emerald Harbor. They wouldn't be much use in the rush of getting there, where our only objective was too not get blown up by fusion attacks or stray missiles.

We climbed onto the jeep, just large enough to fit all of us. Paul took the wheel, Dawn beside him, while Drew and I sat in the back, rifles ready to knock off or shoot fusions that might latch onto the sides during the trip. Max sat in the compartment right behind us. He watched the bombs, nestling them safely between some sheets, while also keeping his eyes on a portable computer device that kept us alert on the status of Emerald Harbor's shield, in case our eyes couldn't tell when the gaps appeared. Behind Max, Lionel operated the turret gun installed into the jeep's back, mobile with his movements.

"Prepare for launch!" a computerized voice said, traveling through various speakers in the corners of the bay. "Prepare for launch!"

"If you believe in any gods..." Paul said to us, his voice gruff. His face was pale, but his eyes were stern, never moving from the bay's door. "Say your prayers now."

I looked at Drew.

"Launch in five..." the computerized voice said.

He met my eyes.

"In four..."

I leaned closer.

"In three..."

He did, too.

"In two..."

Our foreheads touched.

I slipped my fingers through his hair, and I closed my eyes. I heard him breathe, I felt him there, and, for one second, there was just us again. No fusions. No war. Just us.

"In one..."

We pulled part – and just as the bay's door opened.

The jeep jolted. It dropped from the platform's edge, toward the quarter mile gap between the Monolith's launch bay and the ground. My stomach floated, but, just as fast, the drop was over, and we hit the ground alongside other jeeps and tanks. Immediately after the jolt, Paul took the wheel, and we raced around a burning jeep, the heat biting my skin, the smoke blowing into my face, filling my lungs, reminding me that this was real, reminding me of the sounds of war that invaded my head. I wasn't looking through a windshield anymore.

Paul hissed a curse when we almost rammed into a linebacker. The linebacker roared, following us, matching our speed, until Lionel aimed the turret gun at it, fired, and let the fusion fall back, covered in blood.

The jeep driving beside us exploded into a mesh of flames and smoke. It lifted off the ground from the force of whatever had hit it, flew over us, and crashed into the ground on the other side. The flames reached for us, licking at our faces.

"Shit!" Paul said.

He veered – barely dodging a behemoth that rushed past to finish off whatever crew of the exploded jeep that had survived.

With each second, Emerald Harbor grew closer. We drove past groups of fusions and soldiers that engaged with one another in an endless brawl. We drove past trenches where soldiers, both wounded and dead, leaned against the dirt walls. Ahead of us, a colossus approached, shaking the ground with each step, roaring into the air.

"Fucking fantastic!" Paul hissed.

The jeep's portable radio fizzled to life.

"Kanto Resistance coming in," the voice said, a voice that sounded familiar. "I repeat, Kanto Resistance coming in. Providing aerial support for Hoenn team."

_Kanto Resistance..._

_Ash._

As if on cue, a group of jets cut through the air above us. They launched missiles at the colossus, blowing away its chest. It roared in pain and fell back. The jets reared back after the attack and regained formation.

Paul grabbed the radio. "Be careful! If one of those missiles hits us next time, I'm haunting your ass!"

The radio fizzled again. "Nice to see you, too, Paul," the voice – Ash – said. "Cheery as ever!"

"Bite me."

With a laugh, Ash cut off the connection, and I had to smile, despite everything. Ash's jets headed toward the field's other side, to attack two more colossi that had emerged from the dead forests.

Minutes later, we were a mile away from the tower and its force field. Groups of fusions had already run out of the tower, heading toward the shield. Max watched his computer. Then, he looked up.

"It's open!" he said.

A gap large enough for the fusions opened within the shield. Paul sped up. But, the fusions stood right in front of the gap. If we tried to run them through we would be stopped dead in our tracks. _There's too many-_

An explosion of fire engulfed the fusions. I looked back – and just as Deryn's Monolith fired another shot from its cannons, taking out more of the fusions that blocked the path. The fire lingered, blazing across the shield, the fusion bodies, and the ground.

"Here we go!" Paul said.

Faster. We drove into the fire and smoke. It whipped at my skin and gripped my throat.

But, just as fast, we were on the other side of the shield.

We stopped just short of the tower's entrance, the shield closing behind us.

"Yeah!" Dawn said. She lunged from her seat and wrapped her arms around Paul.

He only stared at her with an arched brow.

Dawn grinned nervously, let go, and fell back into her seat, mumbling a quick apology.

Drew grabbed the jeep's radio, changed its channel, and spoke into it: "Deryn, we're in."

"Good," Deryn said, her voice somewhat static from the shield's interference with the signal. "Now, get your job done and get home."

We got out of the jeep, armed ourselves with our guns and vials of the Virus cure, and grabbed the bombs. Then, we released our pokemon and notified them of the situation. I had Blaziken, Drew had Absol, Max had the sceptile he had trained from the treecko he'd received when he had turned ten, Dawn had her empoleon, Paul had his drapion, and Lionel released his metagross.

We nodded to one another and headed into the tower.

* * *

The white walls of Emerald Harbor led into a majority of rooms, including laboratories and meeting rooms. Luckily, Max's computer device, which had the blueprints for Emerald Harbor installed into its database, helped guide the way. But, even with that, not everything was smooth; we weren't that far toward the generator room when we noticed a dead scout fusion sprawled out across the floor in one hallway, its throat slit. We kept going, seeing more dead fusions just like it marking the hallways of the path that led to the generator room.

"Has someone been in here before us?" Dawn asked, checking one of the fusion's bodies when we reached a hallway not far from the generator. She looked for any clues as to who might've killed it, but to no avail.

Absol sniffed the air. He only shook his head at Drew.

"Whoever did this, we'll find out soon enough," Drew said.

Absol raised his head and sniffed again. Then, he growled. The fur along his back ruffled up, as he stared at the walls around us.

I followed his eyes.

There seemed to be nothing, until the wall paint moved.

"Rogues!" Max called out.

Red eyes flashed open from all over, and the entire wall revealed to consist of rogues. They rushed toward us, fangs bared, and we fired our guns. Half the rogues fell in a matter of seconds, while our pokemon pinned some to the floor and sent others flying down the hallway. They kept coming, though, crawling in from the other hallways, climbing over the bodies of their dead brethren. One cornered Dawn. She stabbed her blades into the fusion's head. Other rogues looked at her and roared in anger.

And I felt it.

I felt their anger. I felt their frustration. I felt the rush they felt as they ran toward Dawn, claws sharp and ready. As my comrades and our pokemon fought the hordes of rogues all around me, I leaned against the wall, faint, the thoughts of the fusions invading my head, just as they had done during the Leviathan attack on the Monolith.

_Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Eat. Eat. Eat. Eat. Another's dead. Doesn't matter. Keep going. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill._

_Kill._

_Kill._

_Kill._

_They will _die_._

I looked at Drew. He faced off with a rogue that had managed to get his rifle away from him. Though he handled the fusion through hand to hand combat, he didn't know of the rogue that sneaked in from behind, fangs dripping with saliva, its thoughts filling my head.

_Bite._

It couldn't do that. It couldn't bite Drew. I wouldn't let it. It wasn't allowed to. You're not allowed to, I thought, and I opened my mouth, and I spoke it, too:

"Stop."

And, just like that, the rogue stopped in place. It looked at me, eyes shining red.

_Stop_, its thoughts said, and I felt its confusion, as if its voice was my voice. _Stop?_

Lionel came up and shot the rogue through the head with his handgun. Its voice left my head, lost, as if it had never been there. I remembered it, but I couldn't feel it anymore. A piece of me that had been taken away, but also replaced by another somewhere else along the road.

I looked at the wall, as the world spun around me, filled with the voices of the rogues, of the fusions battling outside, of the link that connected them all – a link I was a part of, a link I felt, a link continuously taken apart and replaced with new fragments, new voices to join the chorus, new minds to join the hive. I looked at the wall, and I saw my eyes in its reflection.

Red. Just like theirs.

A groan from somewhere to the side of me. Across the link, I felt the pleasure of a fusion that had just tasted blood, finally satiating a long hunger that gnawed at the pit of its stomach. I turned – and I saw Paul, beating his fist against the face of the fusion who had sunk its teeth into his shoulder, bypassing his Resistance armor and tasting his blood.

Dawn rushed toward the fusion, stabbing her blades into its back, ripping it from him.

Another piece of the link that had never been there, another piece lost. The gap wasn't permanent, though, and I found comfort in that.

_I found comfort._

My vision clouded. More fatigue filled me. I slumped against the wall, and the voices of my pokemon, of my comrades, of the fusions here, there, and everywhere else, sunk into silence.

* * *

"May!"

I opened my eyes.

Drew cupped my face. "Are you alright?"

"I..." I swallowed. "I don't know. I-I think so." I looked around and at the dozens of dead rogues spread out around us. Blood smeared the walls, dripping down their once clean surfaces, and a sudden wave of nausea over took me. I suppressed the urge to vomit and looked back at Drew. "What happened?"

"You fainted during the fight," Drew said. "You've only been out for a few minutes, though. We got all the rogues."

"Is everyone alright?"

Drew's eyes darkened. He looked to the side. My eyes followed.

Not far off, Lionel and Max surrounded Paul, who sat against the wall, blood flowing freely from the bite wound on his shoulder. His drapion whimpered, curled up by his side. Dawn, on her knees in front of him, slipped her hand over his, watching the sweat building up along his forehead and neck, watching how his breathing was unstable. She bit her lip, her eyes wet.

"Paul," I said. "He got bit. Is he going to be okay?"

"He should be," Max said. "I just injected him with some of the Virus cure. Since we gave it to him early after the bite, he...he should be okay."

Paul chuckled. "You don't sound too sure, Doc," he said, keeping his eyes closed. "Makes me think of that rumor...that the virus is growing immune...to the cure. Just my fucking luck."

"You're going to be okay," Dawn said, her empoleon growling with agreement. "We gave it to you soon enough. After all," she added with a weak smile, "you and I have been through hell together, right? Why would it end here?"

"Because Arceus is just a sadistic bastard of a god...that's why." Paul opened his eyes and looked at her. He grabbed a handgun holstered at his side and pushed it into Dawn's hand. "In case that rumor is true...in case the cure doesn't work..." With his hand over hers on the gun, he led her hand – and the gun – toward his head. "One shot. Straight through here. Should stop me from biting you...or any of that other...shit that fusions do."

"No," Dawn said, pulling his hand from his head – and from the gun. "You're going to be okay."

Paul closed his eyes. "Stupid...girl..."

"That's right. And you're stuck with her."

Gently, she leaned forward. Her lips pressed against his.

When she pulled away, Paul didn't respond. Max looked at him.

"He's unconscious," he said, his voice soft. "But that's expected."

I got up, still dizzy. I held the wall, looking in between the blood splatter and into its surface, seeing my blue eyes. I shook my head and managed to make my way to the team with Drew's help. "What do we do from here?" I asked.

"We can't stop the mission," Lionel said. "Therefore, we can't exactly get Paul out of here right this instant."

Dawn looked up. "We're not far from the generator. You guys go on. I'll stay here with Paul and our pokemon, and we'll be ready to go when the bombs are set."

Drew nodded. "Be careful, Dawn."

"You too."

Drew looked at the rest of us. He reloaded his rifle, and he headed out down the hallway and toward the generator.

Lionel, Max, and our pokemon followed him after grabbing the bombs. I lingered behind for a second, to look at myself in the reflective surface of the wall once more.

My eyes were still blue.

* * *

We emerged into the generator room, having followed the low droning sound of moving machinery and the vibrating floor. Catwalks crossed the generator's mile-long length, leading to different doors along the circular wall. I had to squint my eyes when I looked at it; its lights were bright, shining off the tiles, walls, and the glass that marked the observing rooms a level above us. There was a control room ahead. Even though everywhere else seemed barren, I noticed someone staring at us from behind the room's glass.

A man with red eyes, blond hair, and a black trench coat. He stared at us as if he had expected us to come, but he didn't move. His expression was blank, save for the gleam in his eyes. He crossed his arms against his chest.

I looked above the control room, into one of the observing rooms, where I saw an operator holding something in place, scout fusions snarling at it. A kid, it looked like. A young boy. The more I stared at him, the more his image fleshed out in my mind from the time I'd first met him on Dewford Island.

My heart sank.

Malcolm.

What was Malcolm doing here? Who was that man? Did he have something to do with this? If Malcolm was here...where was Soledad?

"Drew..." I looked at Drew, to point out Malcolm.

But Drew didn't respond. He only stared straight ahead, his eyes widened, his face pale, and his muscles stiff beneath my touch. I followed his eyes, to the center of the room, to what he stared at.

Soledad stared straight back at him.

She was dressed in her suit, save for her helmet. She stared at Drew with what looked like hurt and contrition, while he stared at her as if he stared at a ghost. Soledad closed her eyes and let out a breath.

Then, she opened her eyes, raised her arm, and pointed her gun at Drew.


	23. Over the Hills and Far Away

**-Soledad-**

_Kill Drew and save Malcolm._

_Or let Drew live...and see Malcolm die._

My hand shook. The hand that held the gun. I stared at Drew, and he stared right back. He didn't even acknowledge the gun, only looking at me, as if the fact that I held his life in my hands didn't matter to him. What only mattered was that I was back from the dead – that, though I had died in his arms all those years ago, here I stood, as if nothing had happened at all.

Lionel mouthed my name, his own eyes wide, while Max looked like he wanted to wake up from some dream. Their pokemon stood still, just as tense as the rest of them. Meanwhile, May inched toward Drew. Even with the surprise in her gaze, she seemed to notice the gun when no one else had. But she didn't rush, and neither did her blaziken, who eyed me with more sick realization than she did with shock. The both of them knew that all I had to do was push in, and the gun would fire, and Drew would be gone, and I would have Malcolm back.

My hand only shook harder.

"Soledad...is that...it can't be..." Drew never turned his eyes away from me, never looked at me with repugnance for the gun aimed at him, never minded any of that.

The more I stared at him – the more his eyes grew wet and the more fragile he seemed – the more he looked like he did when he was ten years old, when he had lost his first coordinating contest to me and he sat there and cried, all alone, with no one to turn to, because though he was finally on his own, he still hadn't been used to the idea. Even with all the walls he built around himself, he was still a child then, a child who needed someone.

I remembered holding him close that day. It had been awkward, because only minutes ago we'd been rivals on that coordinating stage, but he needed someone and he didn't have anyone else. He didn't turn, he didn't shield himself, he let me hold him, he let me see the side to him that other people rarely saw. From that, our friendship bloomed, until he seemed like a son to me, and I watched him grow before my eyes, from that young boy I would sing to sleep and shelter when the weather became rough, to a smart teenager who could brighten that coordinating arena and who would also give his life to protect the ones he cared about; and, after the ten/fifteen years where we were apart, from that smart teenager to the handsome, strong man in front of me that concluded it all. The leader of the Hoenn Resistance, one of the survivors of Enfer City, one of the soldiers on the battlefield who swore to avenge the ghosts of Enfer, who swore to reshape this world back into the world it once was, even with the fusions that growled in his face and threatened to take everything away.

And here I was, ready to fire the gun and end it.

Just like Artemis would've done.

And I wasn't Artemis anymore.

I tightened my hold on the gun, spun around, and fired.

The glass to the observing room above the control one shattered – and one of the scout fusions flew against the far wall, blood trailing from the hole in its neck. The other two scout fusions roared, while the operator reared back from the sudden disturbance, releasing Malcolm.

"Malcolm! Run!" I screamed.

Malcolm dropped down from the room's open wall and onto the top of the control room. There, he climbed down to the staircase, trying his best not to fall, tears streaming from his eyes all the same. He paused when Alistair burst through the door, his red eyes ablaze with fury, but Malcolm moved down the stairs right as Alistair would've grabbed him.

"That wasn't part of the plan, Soledad!" Alistair hissed, and he slammed his palm into a button beside the door.

The garage doors that lined the walls opened up. Hordes of fusions ran out, roaring and clawing, soon filling the room and completely surrounding Drew and the others. Gunfire and pokemon attacks rang out, sending fusions flying toward the far walls. But with every fusion that fell, another one took its place, until it seemed that an infinite number of them had resided within the garages.

With Malcolm still running to me, I shot any fusions that crossed me to the floor. I knew Drew could take care of himself in this situation, so I made my way to Malcolm, shooting more fusions and snapping the necks of others, changing to my knives when the gun's bullets ran out and the fusion numbers enclosed around me.

A lasher's tongue whipped toward me. I sliced it off and then threw the knife, which lodged itself into the lasher's forehead. Dozens of scouts crawled over the lasher's carcass and ran for me. I unhooked the rifle from my back and fired into the crowd. Fusions dropped, but more came, until they were close enough to knock the rifle from my hands and swipe at me with their claws. I dodged, parried, and hit, sending more fusions to the floor, and I moved right before a fusion's flamethrower attack would've struck me. Fusions didn't use pokemon-based attacks as much as they could – a clear sign that the bloodthirsty monster in them preferred to rip at you with their claws more than anything else. Still, when fusions did use attacks, it was as vicious as their bite.

One more fusion jumped in my way. In an upward slice, I opened the fusion from groin to neck and kicked it into its comrades. As soon as it was gone, Malcolm reached me, and I gathered him up into my arms.

I ran toward Drew and the others. More fusions blocked our path. I took care of some with my knives, digging them into the fusions' chests and throats. More came, gathering up into a charge behind me. Malcolm's arms were tight around my neck, but I felt them loosen when he noticed the fusions. When a clear path lay between me and May, who nodded her head at me, as if she fully understood the situation now, I let Malcolm go.

"Run to May," I said.

Malcolm looked back at me. "Mommy-"

"Go!"

Malcolm said nothing after that. He ran to May, and she welcomed him with open arms.

I exhaled.

Then, I jolted, as a wave of fatigue, of ice, exploded from my shoulder.

I looked to the side.

A claw stuck out from my armor, long and black, like a dagger. Blood poured from the wound and drenched the claw, pieces of flesh – of my flesh – stuck to the claw's surface. With a growl, the fusion that had impaled me rose up from behind, its fangs right by my ear.

That ice expanded, filling me, slowing down time. My vision clouded. Numbness spread along my muscles. The world tilted, and I wanted to fall with it.

May looked at me and opened her mouth in a silent scream. Malcolm tried to run back to me, but May stopped him with her arms.

"Mommy!" Malcolm screamed.

Drew killed the fusion in front of him. Then, he saw me, he saw the fusion behind me, he saw the claw, and his eyes widened. "Soledad! No!"

I clenched my hand into a fist, and, turning against the wave of pain, I slammed it into the fusion's face.

The fusion reared back. Its claw pulled out of me. I bit back a scream, but I continued, facing the horde of fusions charging from behind. Blood dripped down my arm from my shoulder, the world spun, time slowed, and memories flashed before my eyes, like rain.

A scout lunged for me.

I kicked it in the chest, but another grabbed me from behind. I jolted. Another wave of pain, ice, and fatigue – as another long, black claw burst through the flesh and armor of my other shoulder.

Biting back another scream, I elbowed the fusion in the side. It let go, its claw sliding out of my flesh, and I rammed it into the floor with my arm, the world blurring in the process.

"Soledad!"

Drew's voice was loud, but I knew he wouldn't be able to reach me, not with the fusions that surrounded him and the others. I wanted nothing but to hold him again, remind him that I was still here, and apologize for leaving in the first place, apologize for everything. But I couldn't, because those same fusions blocked my path, too, and as the blood flowed freely from my shoulder, as that ice shot up my spine, as those memories played themselves out in front of me – ghosts against the fusion hordes – I kept fighting.

I grabbed the whipping tongue of a lasher, pulled it in, and threw it into a linebacker, causing them both to crash into a group of scouts and rogues. Something jumped on me and it stabbed its claws into my side. I jolted again; the fatigue was too much, and the fusion's weight sent me to the ground, where more scouts approached, surrounding me from all sides, until I couldn't see the ceiling. Their claws brushed my armor. Saliva dripped off their fangs. Their eyes glowed red.

With a snarl, I mustered my strength and kicked the nearest fusion, even with the others that held me down, even with the blood that dripped down my armor, even with the face of Death leering at me. Only more teeth skimmed my armor, though. Only more fusions came. Only more fusions clawed and growled at me. Only more red eyes glared at me.

Only more memories flashed to life.

Drew, when I held him close after he'd lost his first contest to me, when I would sing to him on nights he couldn't sleep, and when I would stay awake with him until dawn, sharing stories about our contests and our rivals, completely forgetting the distance that had been between us or the time that may have passed. May, when I would train with her, when I would offer advice to her about coordinating, and when I would watch her dominate that coordinating stage as if she was made for it. Harley, when we laughed and played with one another when we were little, when we'd look back on all the things we'd been through together after we'd grown, when his lips would brush mine and I would smell him, and when he'd watch me after we'd made love, his fingers trailing across my skin, as soft as air, his metallic blue-green eyes glowing in the dark, always looking at me.

And the four of us, when we were a family nothing could break apart.

"Mommy!"

I managed to turn my head – and I saw Malcolm push his way through the fusions. They snarled at him, reaching for him, but he avoided them, and he stood by my side. Tears streamed down his face, but he looked at one of the approaching fusions like a warrior, fear and bravery clashing it out in his eyes.

"You stay away from my mommy!" he yelled.

The fusion snarled.

"Malcolm!"

May found her way through the crowd, slamming the butt of her rifle into any fusions that got in her way. She paled when she saw me. She paled even further when she Malcolm, who spread his arms, as if trying to block the fusion from getting to me, despite its hulking size.

I wanted to scream. I wanted to tell both May and Malcolm to run, to get back to Drew and the others, to save themselves, because it was too late for me. But I was too weak to talk; the blood that'd begun to pool around me proved that.

May reached to grab Malcolm.

The fusion lunged toward them both.

I closed my eyes.

_No!_

"_Arooo!"_

A howl. Glass shattered. Something broke through from one of the observing rooms above. The fusion roared.

I slowly opened my eyes. Around me, a shield of purple-black stood, just big enough to encase me, as well as Malcolm and May, who stood by my side. Beyond the shield, the fusion that had tried to attack – and the other fusions that had surrounded me and had been pushed away – slashed at the shield from outside, but none of them could break it.

And, right in front of us, harnessing the shield, was a wolf.

Black- and purple-colored fur covered its body in the pattern of a mightyena with arcanine-like stripes, save for its left forearm and right hind-leg, where the fur broke off in favor of bluish-purple scales, black needles poking out from between each of the scales. Silver claws stretched out from its paws, and, above each paw, the silver-colored bracelets of a houndoom wrapped around the scales and fur, with a matching necklace around its neck, arches along its back, and multiple skull rings pierced through its long, zoroark-like ears. With its eyes glowing red, it channeled the shield, and the more I stared at it, the more something stirred in me.

"You're..." I finally managed to say. "You're...that wolf...that saved...me..."

_The wolf fusion that saved my life four years ago._

May looked at me. She looked back at the wolf, her mouth open with awe, as she made the connection.

Slowly, the wolf turned its head. It looked at us, its eyes still glowing, and I felt it stare at me.

Then, with another growl, the wolf raised its head, and the shield around us expanded, shooting out like an explosion, as bright as the sun. When it touched a fusion, the fusion disintegrated in a matter of seconds. The shield traveled over Drew and the others with no consequence, though, only blowing at their clothes as if they'd been in a windstorm. Alistair survived the shield as well, using his own powers to block it, but all of the fusions in the room were gone as if they'd never been there.

The wolf looked back at me, once the fusions were gone and the shield had dispersed, and its eyes dimmed down to the regular red of a fusion. Then, the red receded, until only the wolf's irises were colored.

As my vision darkened, the wolf stepped over, until it loomed over me like it'd done four years ago.

A telepathic voice filled my head; the wolf's voice:

_I'm here._

And my vision faded to black.


	24. It Takes a Fusion

**-May-**

The wolf looked at me.

I swallowed. But I didn't feel anxious. I didn't feel scared. Despite that a fusion stood in front of me, I didn't want to run away. If this really had been the wolf that had saved Soledad four years ago – the wolf that had just saved Malcolm and I, too, having destroyed all the fusions in the room – then I had no reason to be afraid, definitely with how the red hues usually found in fusion eyes were only limited to the wolf's irises, proving that it had retained its humanity instead of blatantly following the Hivemind.

Even with that...I felt something, as I looked into the wolf's eyes. I felt a sense of comfort I hadn't felt since-

My eyes widened.

Malcolm squirmed out of my arms. He dropped to his knees by Soledad's side, never minding the wolf, and shook her, his voice breaking the silence around us like a hammer to glass. "Mommy, wake up!"

Soledad didn't stir. Blood still flowed freely from her wounds. Malcolm looked at his hands where he'd touched her, and his face paled at the sight of the blood that now stained his palms. He only shook her again, though, and looked at her eyes, waiting for them to open. But they never did. More tears ran down his cheeks. He shook her one more time.

"Mommy! Wake up! Why won't you wake up?"

Slowly, the wolf stepped closer to Soledad. Malcolm noticed and stumbled to get away, but the wolf's gaze seemed to calm him when it looked at him. Then, the wolf lowered its head and sniffed at Soledad. It sniffed her armor. It sniffed the blood that poured from her cuts. It sniffed her hair and her face. It licked her cheek, but she didn't wake to that, either.

It growled.

The fur on the back of its neck ruffled up, its ears pressed against his head, its eyes darkened. It turned – and it glared at the blonde-haired man I recognized was Alistair Donahue, who still recovered from blocking the wolf's earlier attack.

Alistair rivaled the wolf's glare. "Fenrir," he hissed. "I was wondering when you would rear your ugly head again. You've been a thorn in our side for a while now, disobeying Kruismara, disobeying us, disobeying the Hivemind, and causing all sorts of trouble." He snarled; the sense of arrogance amongst his posture disappeared, replaced by something ferocious. "This will be the last time you disobey!" he roared.

The wolf – Fenrir – growled louder, bared its fangs, and got into a battle stance.

"May!"

Drew was by my side in a matter of seconds, with Lionel, Max, and our pokemon right behind him. He checked on me, and then he looked at Soledad. He dropped to his knees much like Malcolm had done, and, hesitantly, as if he risked breaking the very thing he touched, he brushed his fingers along her cheek, before he took her in his arms altogether, never minding how her blood dripped down his armored chest. His eyes grew wet. "Soledad..."

I reached for him. "Drew...I..."

Drew shook beneath my touch. He glared at Alistair. "You son of a bitch," he hissed. "_I'll fucking kill you myself_!"

Alistair laughed – a laugh that made me feel sick. "You guys need to learn to take turns."

He snapped his fingers, and fusions poured from the hallway where we'd come in from, as well as from the doors that lined the circular walls. Their roars filled the room, their claws scratched against the catwalks as they crossed them, their red eyes flashed like wildfire. They surrounded us, as if the fusions Fenrir had destroyed had never left to begin with. Waiting for the order to attack, they snarled at us, fangs dripping with saliva and blood.

"Damn it." I grabbed Malcolm and pulled him close to me.

Blaziken moved to guard me from the front, while Lionel, Max, and their pokemon faced the fusions behind me. Drew, still kneeling and holding Soledad against him, grabbed one of the handguns holstered at his waist and aimed it at the fusions, his absol flexing his claws from beside him.

Meanwhile, a clear path lay between Fenrir and Alistair.

Alistair beckoned Fenrir forward, a fierce grin on his face. "Come on, Fenrir. Let's start with you. My friends will keep your friends busy, in the mean time."

Fenrir looked back at Drew, at the fusions that surrounded us. It looked at Malcolm. It looked at Soledad. It looked at me.

I nodded.

It growled again, turned toward Alistair, and rushed forward. Right as it jumped onto Alistair, jaws snapping, the fusions filled the gap, completely enclosing us.

They lunged.

Guns fired. Pokemon attacked. Fusions roared. We were pushed back to the far wall and separated from one another. Malcolm stayed behind me, though, even when I lost sight of Drew, Max, Lionel, and Blaziken.

I looked over the waves of fusions. Fenrir charged toward Alistair, the cacturne-like needles on its scaled forearm glowing with a needle arm attack. Despite how Alistair dodged it easily, his body shifting into a black mist, he cried out when Fenrir opened its mouth as soon as he reformed and unleashed a flamethrower attack, pushing the hybrid against the railing that lined the decline into the generator. But, Alistair managed to break through the heat, channel an electric-type attack in his palm, and shoot it toward Fenrir. In a bright blast, Fenrir flew across the room, slammed into the wall, and slid down to the floor. Sparks of electricity surged across its fur.

An operator stepped in front of me and blocked my view. I pulled back, when my eyes crossed its nonexistent face and memories of those women and children invaded my head. The operator's arm separated into dozens of branch-like appendages and wrapped around my limbs. It made me drop my gun and lifted me into the air. I choked; a tentacle secured itself around my throat, tightening.

"Hey, Slendy!"

The operator turned its head – and Paul slammed the butt of his rifle into the operator's jaw.

The operator fell back. Its tentacles shrunk. I dropped to the floor, gasping for breath.

Dawn got down by my side, her empoleon right beside her. "Are you okay?"

I looked up. "Paul, you're-"

"I'm fine," he said, moving the shoulder where he'd been bitten. Makeshift bandages covered the wound, and though he still seemed pale, he glared at the fusions around as if nothing could hinder him from charging in, guns firing. His drapion growled, sounding confused. He followed its eyes – to the battle between Fenrir and Alistair. "I'm guessing that guy is one of Arbiter Corp's cronies. Who's the dog, though?"

"It's on our side." I stood up and held Malcolm close when he buried his face into my armor.

"Who's the kid?"

"Long story," I said. "We have to get rid of these fusions."

Dawn twirled the knives in her hands. "Don't have to tell us twice."

She moved forward with Paul, shooting and stabbing at any fusions that got in their way. I grabbed the rifle I'd dropped and helped, trying to clear out the numbers that stood between me and Drew. However, as before, the more fusions that we killed, the more that poured in from the hallway and far doors. It felt as if Arbiter Corp hadn't only expected our outside attack on Emerald Harbor; they had also expected someone to make it inside.

I moved to reload. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the operator that Paul had hit get up again. I spun around and aimed my gun at it.

"_You will obey!" _it said, in that chorus of different women and children voices.

My breath caught in my throat. As if the operator's voice had been a trigger...

The thoughts. The motivations. The orders from Alistair. The lust for blood and carnage. The voices of all the fusions around me invaded my head. All their desires. All their plans. Everything. I understood them. I heard them. I felt them. Like before, on the Monolith during the Leviathan's attack, or in the hallway when we first entered Emerald Harbor, I stood with them. A part of them.

"No..." I said to the operator, both speaking and thinking it, as if something controlled my voice, yet I also spoke with my own free will. I glared. "No. _You will obey me_."

The operator tilted its head. It stepped closer, until it stood by my side. I heard Malcolm whimper from beside me, but I only kept my eyes on the operator.

"Kill," I said, still controlled, still in control. "Kill them all."

The operator turned and looked at the fusions in front of me. Then, its back shifted, forming hundreds of tentacles that stretched and shot out toward the fusions. Growls of confusion, frustration, and surprise filled the air, as each fusion was lifted up in a tentacle.

_Kill them all._

And the operator obeyed.

With a sickening crunch, the operator snapped the spines of all the fusions in its tentacles' holds and threw their lifeless bodies across the room. Afterward, as if it had been a simple task, it looked at me, waiting for another command.

"May!" Dawn appeared beside me, her gun pointed at the operator. She glanced at me, though, and her face paled. "May," she said again. "You-your eyes. _They're red_."

"I know."

Beyond where the fusions once stood, Fenrir had Alistair pinned to the ground, right in front of the railing that declined into the generator. Its teeth tore into Alistair's shoulder, drawing blood and bits of flesh and cloth.

I tasted the blood with Fenrir. Though I also felt tinges of the pain Alistair felt, I felt Fenrir's satisfaction even more, as if a lost soul had finally been avenged, as if the fact that Soledad's life stood on the edge of a cliff was paid back with Alistair's blood, which filled my mouth and dripped from my teeth. As if I was one with Fenrir, I wanted Alistair to suffer, to experience the same pain I'd felt when the Chimera Virus had taken everything away.

Alistair pulled something out of his pocket. A vial, with a blue-colored liquid I'd never seen before. He stabbed its needle-like tip into Fenrir's flank and injected in all of the liquid.

Fenrir yelped. I cried out with him. The wolf backed away from Alistair, shaking, as if all the energy had been sapped from its body.

Alistair grinned, stood up, picked Fenrir up by the scruff of its neck, and threw it over the railing.

"No!" I screamed, reaching out to Fenrir.

The operator raised its head, and, following my movements as if I piloted it, reached out its arm, which stretched forward, shot past Alistair, and wrapped around Fenrir before it fell out of sight. Then, the operator pulled Fenrir in and dropped it to the floor right next to me.

"How-" Alistair looked at me, holding his shoulder, blood gushing between his fingers. I met his eyes, and, for once since this battle had began, the blood drained from his face. "You're..._you're a hybrid_?"

Dawn gasped and backed away from me. "W-what?"

Alistair snarled. "Doesn't matter!"

His body shifted, forming into that black mist, and in a matter of seconds he was in front of me. He slammed his arm into Dawn, sending her skidding across the floor and into her empoleon. He then grabbed me by my neck with his good hand and held me up against the wall, blood still trailing down his other arm from his wounded shoulder, staining the remaining shreds of his coat sleeve.

Fenrir whimpered, but it was too weak too move. Malcolm tried to run, but an operator-like tentacle expanded from Alistair's back – colored black from his trench coat – and wrapped around Malcolm, suspending him into the air. The fusions around us hissed and sneered, like the crowd at a duel, and the operator that had followed my orders simply stood there, as if Alistair had regained control over it.

"May!"

Drew broke through the crowd and rushed toward us.

"Let her go!" he yelled.

Alistair glared at him. Another tentacle sprouted out from his back, hit Drew, and pushed him to the ground, holding him in place. I heard Lionel, Max, Paul, and our pokemon call out for me, but growls proved that the fusions had stopped them from reaching us.

With his fingers tightening around my neck, Alistair chuckled at me. The fusion voices still filled my head. In the midst of it, ice moved along my muscles. But it wasn't from Alistair's hold. It was from something else, from the anger that boiled in my stomach at the sight of Drew, from the worry for Malcolm as he cried, from the helpless look in Fenrir's eyes, from the frustration of Max, Lionel, Dawn, and Paul, from the vision of Soledad as she lay there dying, from the memories of everything lost in this war. As I channeled the feelings, I channeled the ice.

"Mortals," Alistair said, as if the word offended him. "So prone to fear. So prone to desperation. But you." He looked at me. "You're one of us. I don't know how you became one of us, but, frankly, I don't care." He laughed. "Besides, you controlled _one_ operator. Whoop-de-doo. You're not as powerful as us, obviously. In the end, we're still the ones with the armies and the powers. You? You're just a scared, little bitch. _You're nothing to be afraid of_."

The fusion in me growled. I met Alistair's eyes. That ice in my veins rushed to my palm.

I frowned.

"How wrong you are."

I grabbed Alistair's arm.

Alistair's eyes widened. He looked down at his arm – at his fingers that were around my neck – and watched as ice grew along his skin, spreading from my palm. It stretched across his arm, encased his sleeve and the blood between his fingers, and reached up to his neck. I raised my legs and kicked his abdomen, breaking free of his frozen hold. He stumbled back and finally screamed, as the ice tore into his muscles, keeping that arm in place. I felt samples of his pain through the Hivemind, but I enjoyed it more than I suffered, that fusion in me purring with content. His tentacles shrunk, releasing Malcolm and Drew.

I caught Malcolm and watched as Alistair glared at me, snarling through the pain.

"You bitch!" He glared at the fusions around us. "What are you standing there for? _Kill her_!"

The fusions looked at me. They bared their fangs.

"No," I said to them, my eyes on Alistair. "Kill _him_."

The fusions stopped. They looked at Alistair.

They growled.

Alistair swallowed and backed away – as the fusions turned toward him and approached, bearing their fangs hungrily.

"No," he said. "D-don't. You're supposed to listen to me! Not her! No! Stop!"

The fusions lunged.

He managed to keep a lot of them away with his electric-type attacks, even with how they kept coming, even with how they bit and slashed at him, cornering him against the railing into the generator. When a clear path lay between me and him, he turned his eyes to me, roared, and reached out. His arm shaped into a black, blade-like tentacle and shot toward me.

I gasped.

Fenrir howled and jumped up.

With a slice of its needle arm, Fenrir cut Alistair's tentacle in half before it reached me. Then, the wolf glared at Alistair. The needles on its scaled arm glowed again. It jumped up, reared its arm forward, and the needles shot out in the form of pin missile.

The needles impaled Alistair.

He choked. Blood poured down his legs and stained his clothes from the various needles that now protruded from his chest. His back touched the railing, his red eyes wide. He looked at me, he looked at Fenrir, he looked at Drew, at Lionel, at Max, at Paul, at Dawn, at our pokemon, as we looked back.

"If fear can...die..." he said. "Then...so...can...we."

He fell back – and over the railing.

I felt the loss seconds later; the gap in the Hivemind where Alistair used to be. I closed my eyes and breathed out. Unlike with how the Hivemind would fill the gap with another fusion's voice if a fusion died, Alistair had been a head, so the impact he'd left behind stayed there. Fusions from far off growled their confusion, echoing across the connection. I heard them loud and clear.

Paul grunted. "I think that's enough excitement for one day..."

Drew didn't see the humor in the comment. He only walked up to my side. "May..." he said.

I met his eyes. He swallowed – and I knew that my irises were probably still red. "Let's set the bombs and get out of here," I said.

He nodded.

As Max tended to Soledad, who lay against one of the other walls, and Lionel fumbled with the bombs, I made my way to Fenrir. It'd collapsed shortly after the pin missile attack; its battle with Alistair, the attack it'd used to clear the room before that, it had all probably weakened it. I got down on my knees in front of it. It breathed heavily, its eyes closed, whimpering slightly.

_Fenrir saved Soledad four years ago. Just now, it had almost sacrificed itself to save me, too._

Softly, my fingers ran through the striped fur along the back of its neck. Then, I brushed my thumb across the scales on its forearm, skimming the length of a needle.

I froze.

Visions invaded my head.

Images. Images of a purple-haired man, dressed in a cacturne-themed outfit, watching a teenaged version of me perform on a coordinating stage. Images of that same man, as he laughed with Drew, Soledad, and I, traveling beside us on one of Johto's many routes, the sun in our faces. Images of that man, older, brushing his fingers along Soledad's cheek, hugging back when I pounced on him during the reunion party in Enfer City, holding me close after I'd felt the scales and needles the skin on his arm had begun to change into, kissing my forehead and wiping the tears from my eyes when he told me he was going to stay behind, so we could live, so we could survive, because it was too late for him, because he was turning into a fusion.

I looked down at Fenrir, who moved beneath my touch. It opened its eyes and met mine. I looked into their red hues, as they shifted, slowly changing to their original color.

Metallic blue-green.

Tears pushed against my eyes. My hand shook. I wanted to bury my face into Fenrir's fur and cry.

"Harley," I whispered.

Fenrir closed his eyes again.

My hand traveled to his flank, where I felt the area where Alistair had injected Fenrir with that liquid. Around that area, I felt something...strange. And familiar. I moved the fur and saw a patch of tanned skin.

My breath caught in my throat.

Tanned human skin.

Whatever Alistair had injected Fenrir with, it was beginning to change him back into a human.

"The bombs are set, Drew!" Lionel called out.

I blinked, returning to reality. Fenrir – Harley – was unconscious before me. Gently, I lifted him up in my arms and stood. I saw Drew do the same thing with Soledad, her wounds patched up with bandages, while Lionel finished adjusting the bombs toward the control room, right next to the railing. Dawn and Paul finished off the few fusions that had survived the battle, even with how the fusions simply stood there, awaiting orders. Though I understood their reluctance to have fusions within reach, moving or not, my heart ached at the idea of their meaningless deaths. I shook my head at the thought and made my way over to Drew, carrying Harley in my arms.

"So," Paul said, eyeing Harley, "that dog really was on our side. I wonder why."

Drew looked at me, as if he wondered the same thing.

"It's Harley," I said.

Everyone looked at one another in disbelief.

Paul arched a brow. "Does anyone stay dead in this story?"

Dawn glared and elbowed him in the ribs.

"Harley..." Malcolm repeated. He looked up at me, eyes bright and innocent. "...Daddy?"

I smiled. "Yeah." I looked ahead. "Let's go."

Drew led the way.

* * *

We were out of Emerald Harbor in fifteen minutes. Much of the battlefield had been cleared, reminding me of how much time we'd spent fighting Alistair; however, sounds of minor quarrels still echoed from the beach, with the Monoliths providing firepower against a couple of colossi that'd been late to the party. As soon as we reached the force field that still protected the tower, it opened for us, a gap large enough to let us through. With that, I figured that the shield reacted to fusion presence – whether that was me or Harley – which explained why it opened when fusions needed to get through.

When we reached the outside of Emerald Harbor's force field, a drop ship lowered to the ground in front of us. The side door opened and soldiers gestured us inside. We climbed in. The ship took off as soon as the door closed and headed toward the Monoliths. The piloting soldier grabbed a radio by his side and spoke into it:

"Hoenn team has been retrieved. Bombs are set and ready."

"Roger," Deryn said from the other line. "Hoenn team? Barking brilliant, mates. Now come home."

I exhaled, turned my head, and met the eyes of one of the soldiers. He frowned a little – probably at the fact that my irises were red – but he didn't point it out, only looking over our entire motley group.

"I'm not going to even ask," he said.

I chuckled, and I watched Drew as he ran his fingers through Soledad's hair, his eyes more warm than shocked now. More happy than disappointed. He didn't seem to mind if he ever got an explanation. I looked down at Harley, who I still cradled in my arms, and I buried my face into his fur, while Malcolm, walking over from his mother's side, joined the embrace.

The ship shook. A distant explosion. I looked out the near window.

A bright, white light engulfed Emerald Harbor, covering it in a fiery storm.


	25. Who We Are

**-Soledad-**

I opened my eyes.

Pain coursed through me, clawing at my shoulders and side. Even though something soft cushioned my back – a bed of some sort – fire still bit along my spine. It almost hurt to look at the ceiling, too; bright lights invaded my senses, provoking a headache, and it felt as if rust encrusted my entire body. So, I just stuck to moving my eyes, even though I had to squint through the lights.

From what I could see, the room was plain, save for the wooden door next to the foot of the bed, which was somewhat open. Shadows moved across the wall, in sync with people that stood just beyond the door.

"Have you talked to them?" said one of the shadows – one of the people – his voice familiar.

"I just told them to get here," said the other one, her voice just as familiar.

"Do they know the way?"

"Yeah."

One shadow sighed and ran a hand down his face. "I just hope they can explain...this. How the hell did this happen? Everything I thought...I just thought you and I were left. Before that, I thought I was the only one left. But, now-"

"We're together again, technically."

The shadow shook his head. "Not in the way I imagined we'd be, though. With you, and Soledad, and Malcolm, and Harley...I just...I just don't know, May. I can't stop wondering if an operator is screwing with my head right now."

"Everything's been hitting me hard, too, Drew, and leaving me as much confused as you are. But we won the Battle for Emerald Harbor. Alistair's dead. We survived. At times like this, you have to consider that above everything else."

"I just..." The shadow turned – toward the door. "I just can't believe she lied to me."

I swallowed. At that second, it felt like Drew looked straight at me, peering through the eyes of his shadow.

With how he sounded, I wasn't surprised if May had told Drew everything. I didn't blame her, either. From May's words and how fusions weren't ripping at my flesh, I assumed the encounter with Alistair really had been won, and, if Drew had rescued me from the chaos, he would have had questions, questions that May would have had to answer. She cared for me, but she loved him, and either way everything would've ended with me having to tell Drew about how I was Artemis – and how I'd been Artemis over the course of the four years he had thought I was dead.

Another shadow crossed the wall, a smaller one, growing in size until it stood right by May and Drew. "Is Mommy awake yet?"

_Malcolm._

"I don't know, Mal," May said softly. "Why don't you check?"

Through the opened door, Malcolm poked his head in, his eyes bright. He grinned at me. "Mommy's awake!" While he ran over to my bedside, the door opened all the way, revealing May and Drew.

I kept my eyes away from Drew's and tried to push myself up further to greet Malcolm properly. In the place of the chest piece to the _Artemis _suit were thick, white bandages, bloodied in the spots where the fusions had stabbed me, save for my arms, collar bone, and neck. I still had my gauntlets on, though, and pieces of the suit, including the cape that hung from my belt, still covered my legs and feet. But, my weapons were gone, and the feeling of my hair along my back reminded me that my helmet was probably still in Ratchet's possession.

"You've been out for a few hours," May said. "How are you feeling?"

"Like Groudon stepped on me." I looked at her, at her eyes, and my breath caught in my throat. "Why are your eyes red?"

"Long story," she said, leaning against the wall. "But, frankly, I have no idea. I was just telling Drew how I contacted Ellis and Moira. Maybe they'll be able to figure it out once they get here."

"Where are we?"

"One of the bases for the Johto Resistance," Drew said, walking over to my bedside. "The Johto Resistance are still in Orre to help with the assault on Odysseus. We had permission to use this place while they're gone."

"Oh." I met Drew's eyes, which were dark, as if he expected me to say something. "Looks like I have a lot of explaining to do..."

Drew sighed. "I already know, about everything. About who you were over the past four years."

"Drew-"

"There's a piece of me that's glad you're alive, that's glad I have you back. But, there's also a piece of me that..." He frowned. "When I look at you, I don't see the woman that was like a mother to me. I see the assassin that the world was warned to look out for. I'm happy you're here, but I wish it wasn't like this."

"I understand." I closed my eyes. "I wish it wasn't like this, either. I...I'm sorry."

Drew stayed silent. Then, he shifted, and I looked at him. "I'm sorry, too," he said.

He walked toward the door. May stayed him with a hand to his shoulder, but he only looked ahead, shrugged her off, and left.

"Drew?" Malcolm said. "Why is he mad?"

I exhaled. "Because I haven't been that great of a superhero."

Malcolm looked at me, his eyes innocent. "But you were a superhero, Mommy. You came to save me."

Gently, I brushed my fingers along his hair, only feeling the pressure through my gauntlet.

"Villains aren't superheros, Mal."

* * *

Though May insisted I rest, sitting in a bed wasn't going to make the current situation go away. Even with how it hurt to move, I mustered the strength to walk with May through the Johto Resistance base, which was a small outpost in the forests of Johto's center, just big enough to house the rest of the Hoenn Resistance team and a group of soldiers also assigned to stay in the area. During our walk, May told me about the Monoliths and General Deryn Abraham, who were on their way back to Hoenn to aid in the hunt for At Hell's End, and how the Battle for Emerald Harbor had went during the time I was unconscious.

"Alistair called you a hybrid?" I asked, as May and I walked into the base's kitchen area, having just passed Max and Lionel.

"It makes sense," she said, "considering how I turned his own fusions against him."

"What's it like, being a hybrid?"

Her red eyes darkened. "Hard to describe. Right now, I can hear the thoughts of Kruismara and far off fusions. They're still confused about Alistair's death."

"You're part of the Hivemind?"

"Basically."

Paul Slate, seated at the kitchen table, looked up from his book, as if he'd finally realized we'd walked through the door. "Look who's awake."

I grimaced when pain surged through my shoulder. "I'm hanging in there."

"I can see that." He snorted. "The boss isn't as happy as I thought he'd be, though, about you being alive and everything."

"Paul," May said, narrowing her eyes, "shouldn't you be talking to Dawn about something?"

"I don't know, should I?"

"You don't remember what happened in Emerald Harbor right before you passed out from that fusion bite?"

"Apart from agonizing pain? Can't say I did."

May sighed and shook her head. "Just go talk to Dawn. She needs to check out the bite on your shoulder anyway and make sure it hasn't festered."

"Fine." He dog-eared the book's page, got up, and walked toward the door. He stopped at the threshold and looked at me. "Oh yeah, by the way, your husband's not dead."

My face fell. "W-what?"

May firmed her jaw. Then, she touched my shoulder. "Follow me."

* * *

May led me to a computer room toward the back of the base. Inside of the room, amidst a dozen of dormant computers, an operating table lay under a couple of dimmed lights. I walked closer, past May, and saw a black- and purple-colored shape move beneath a makeshift blanket. I walked closer, and I recognized the head of the wolf fusion that had saved my life four years ago. The wolf, curled up in the blanket, whimpered in its sleep.

"Fenrir, Alistair called him," May said. "He helped us fight Alistair after you passed out, but, in return, Alistair injected him with something that's-"

"What does Fenrir have to do with me?" I asked. "Why did he save me four years ago, too?"

May met my eyes. She softly placed her hand on Fenrir's side. Then, she grabbed my arm with her other hand.

Images filled my head, coming to life before my eyes.

A purple-haired man, whose metallic blue-green eyes shined softly as he laughed with me, as he held me, as his lips brushed across my skin and his fingers trailed down my back, as his scent invaded my senses and his voice filled my ears, as I saw him for the last time down in Enfer City before that sleep powder hit me and I collapsed in his arms.

When May let go, the visions left me. I stumbled forward and grabbed the edge of the operating table, my heart hammering against my chest.

Slowly, I looked up at the wolf fusion.

He opened his eyes slightly and looked back.

My hand shaking, I touched the striped fur on the wolf's cheek. I felt the pressure through my gauntlet, but not the warmth, and I found myself ripping off the gauntlet as if it was a piece of me I never wanted to see again. Afterward, my wedding ring, dimmed with age, but still on my finger, glowed beneath the lights, glowed against his eyes. I moved closer to him, finally feeling the warmth of his fur against my palm, feeling the fur as it brushed along the wedding band, and my forehead touched his, tears pushing against my eyes.

"I thought I'd lost you," I whispered, the only words I could get out.

A voice filled my head. His voice:

_I thought I'd lost you, too._

I let the emotions out. I let the dead shell of Artemis fall off. I let the memories of the past wash over me.

I let the tears fall.

* * *

That night, I stayed by Harley's side, running my fingers through his fur, touching the patch of human-like skin that grew from his flank. When Malcolm came, I sung to him and let him fall asleep against me. Every now and then Harley shifted beneath my touch to lick Malcolm's cheek affectionately, before he fell back asleep as well, still shaking from the effects of whatever Alistair had injected him with that was changing him back into a human.

Many questions filled my head, about how everything that had happened had possibly happened. But, the more I thought about it, the more I didn't care.

I closed my eyes.

"Soledad?"

I opened them and looked toward the door.

Drew sighed and walked over to me. He unfolded the blanket he held and covered Malcolm and I with it, before readjusting Harley's blanket to where it covered him again, too. "Odysseus has been destroyed," Drew said, keeping his voice low so he didn't wake Malcolm or Harley. "We just got the word."

"Good to hear."

"All that's left is At Hell's End." He looked at me, his eyes glowing in the dark. "What do you plan to do now?"

"I don't know. I became Artemis because I had thought I'd lost everything, but...I was too stupid to realize how much more I was risking to lose."

"I'm not going to forget," Drew said. "About what's happened, I mean. But, I'm also not going to forget everything before that, either."

I met his eyes.

"I'm inviting you back into the Hoenn Resistance," he said.

"I..." I looked down. "Do I deserve that? After what I became, I would even kick myself out the door."

"This war is far from over. I'm not inviting you back because you're a good soldier. I'm not inviting you back because I have pity on you. I invited you back because that's how you raised me – we all have a different voice, a different reason to be fighting this battle, and before all of this happened you helped me learn my own reasons."

He walked toward the door. His back faced me.

"But," he added, "my voice is my voice, and your voice is your voice. You don't have to accept the invitation."

He stepped forward-

"Drew."

Drew stopped and gazed at me.

I didn't look away. "You're not alone."

He studied me. Then, he smiled.

"Neither are you."

* * *

**AN: **This marks the end of "Voices"! Be sure to check out the epilogue!**  
**


	26. Legacy

**-May-**

The bonfire burned brightly.

Within the flames, as they lashed out over the broken tree branches, I saw everything that'd happened over the last few weeks. My resurrection. The first time I met Malcolm at the Dewford sanctuary and I found out that Soledad was Artemis. My reunion with Drew. Joining the Hoenn Resistance. Meeting General Deryn Abraham and riding the Monoliths through the Leviathan attack. Fighting alongside Drew, Max, Paul, Dawn, and Lionel at the Battle for Emerald Harbor. Finding out that I was a hybrid – a fusion – and that Harley had survived his sacrifice down in Enfer City through becoming Fenrir.

Reaching to the sky, the fire colored everything in a warm, orange glow, running along the dirt ground and spreading across the outer wall of the Johto Resistance's base. The evening air was cold; it fit with the dystopian state the world had plunged into five years ago, when Kruismara, the fusions, and the Arbiter Corporation stood tall to carry out Verdana's legacy. For a long time, the people had thought Arbiter Corp had won, but now, with Emerald Harbor and Odysseus destroyed, we were one step closer to ending this war, even if the horizon wasn't in sight quite yet.

I grabbed the stack of photos on the bench beside me. They were photos of comrades and pokemon that had lost their lives during the Battle for Emerald Harbor. Nameless faces to those who didn't know them, but important pieces to a revolution that had only once been a dream. I'd received these photos from the soldiers stationed in the base alongside the Hoenn Resistance. These had been their friends, their family, their pokemon, their memories, their raindrops that fell with every storm, their reasons to fight this war, their voices to speak against the dark future ahead.

Gently, I tossed photo after photo toward the fire. The flames consumed them, converted them into the very ash we'd risen from when the Arbiter Corporation had burned us at the stake. A phoenix, whose end only brought new life. I'd had permission from the owners of these photos to do this, of course; it was my own way of honoring the memory of every voice that had played its part in our revolution. They had sacrificed themselves – they had faced the fire head on – and we were the product of their ashes, with the promise of a new future glistening across our wings.

When all the photos had joined the fire, I closed my eyes for a second and felt the flames' heat caress my face.

It had been a few days since the Battle for Emerald Harbor, with the Johto Resistance still caught up in Orre with business regarding the destruction of Odysseus. The fusion bite Paul had suffered during the Battle had healed; the cure for the Chimera Virus had done its job. Dawn, though obviously disheartened that he didn't remember the kiss she'd given him, still stayed by his side and made sure everything else was okay. Drew helped Max and Lionel with determining our next move, or sending his insight to the rest of the Resistance on where At Hell's End could possibly be. Malcolm was safe and well. I'd last left him asleep on the couch, curled up in the pokemon Soledad and Harley had given him, which included Soledad's pidgeot and lapras, and Harley's cacturne and banette. When Soledad had come clean about the destruction of the Dewford sanctuary and the death of Cary, Malcolm had taken it hard, but he wasn't mad at Soledad, and Soledad had managed to bring a smile to his face by telling him stories about his father, Harley – who was still Fenrir and who was still in the midst of changing back into a human, always exhausted from the process, where he'd spent most of the time asleep.

"Hey."

I turned and looked at Soledad as she walked up to my side. The flames, still cackling and reaching, painted its warm colors across her face, deepening her green-blue eyes and reflecting off her new Resistance armor. She kept her hands behind her back.

"How's Harley?" I asked.

"Still asleep," she said.

"You took the fact that he was alive rather well."

She chuckled. "I know. I'm surprised I did, too. But, I guess..." She looked at the bonfire. "When he first saved me, four years ago, and I looked at that wolf as he looked at me...for one split second, a voice inside me said, 'It's him'. But, I forgot it as fast as it came, because there was no reason for me to believe that, when every other wish I'd had since this war began had crashed and burned."

"We all need a reason to believe." I smiled. "It's good to have the both of you back."

Soledad stayed silent. She moved her hands from behind her back – and pulled out the helmet to the _Artemis_ suit. "Ratchet sent me this," she said, "with a note that I would know what to do with it." She looked back at the bonfire. "I don't have any photos of Cary, or any of the other residents of the Dewford sanctuary. So, I thought...I don't know, if it's alright, to put their memories to rest with this."

I nodded.

She stepped forward and looked at the one-way visor of the helmet. Then, she tossed the helmet in the fire, until the flames consumed its maroon-colored surface and it was gone from sight. She exhaled, as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

"If Harley was awake," I said, "he would've told you that he's proud."

She met my eyes. "I still don't know his reaction to Artemis, though. I mean, I'm lucky that the soldiers here didn't know much about Artemis. And Drew...I don't know if he's ever going to fully trust me again."

"We'll cross these bridges when we get to them. We may have problems," I added, "but we're family."

"Yeah." She smiled with me. "Family."

* * *

An hour later I'd put the bonfire out and had retreated back into the base. Ellis and Moira contacted me then and told me they would be in the area by morning. With that in mind, I wished everyone goodnight and headed for the staying room I shared with Drew, who was still working with Lionel and Max.

I put my pokeballs on the nightstand, walked into the bathroom, and looked at myself through the mirror. Red-colored eyes looked back at me; and, in the far reaches of my mind, I heard the thoughts of the fusions and Kruismara. I'd trained myself over the last few days to not let the Hivemind overtake me, to where I could join and listen to it on my own free will. Still, their voices were loud. The rest of Arbiter Corp's council were probably searching for me after the death of Alistair. Since I didn't know whether Alistair or my commands to the fusions during the Battle for Emerald Harbor had managed to inform anyone from the council that I was a hybrid, I tried my best to stay quiet through the Hivemind, though I doubted anyone could pinpoint coordinates through it. Yeah, such fusions as operators would be able to tell any fusions nearby to come to its location, but when it came to finding a fusion without any guidance, I didn't have the power, and I didn't think Arbiter Corp had it, either.

Otherwise, fusions would've been knocking on our door already.

I sighed, dropped my clothes, and turned on the shower. When I stepped in, the hot water cascaded through my hair, down my skin, across the scars from the bullets that should've killed me for good, and washed away the cold, outside air that had clung to me. Steam hugged the walls and fogged the mirror. I closed my eyes and let the water run over my feet.

Minutes later, I heard something push the shower curtain aside. Before I could open my eyes, an arm wrapped around my abdomen from behind and a familiar scent filled my nose.

I smiled.

Drew brushed his lips along my shoulder. His palms trailed up my side, following the water, his fingers warm against my breasts. I leaned back into him, arched my neck, heard him whisper "I love you" into my ear, his voice smooth. I turned my head, I met his eyes, and he didn't look away, even when red clashed with green. He never looked away. I shifted in his arms, faced him, pushed my mouth against his, tasted him, smelled him, felt him, held him.

His fingers traveled between my thighs. One entered me. I groaned into his hair. His lips followed the slope of my neck, his goatee prickly against my skin.

The water fell onto us, traveling over us, gathering along our skin as if we were one being. One voice. One reason. One memory that hadn't been killed off by the fusions. No matter what happened, I wasn't alone. Drew would always be right beside me.

The steam weaved in between us. My mouth to Drew's, my hands on his back, his fingers left me. I was still wet and ready for more. He smiled, and, pushing his hips against mine, he slid into me.

I arched into him. The fusion in me purred with contempt and hunger. My lips skimmed the skin of his face, tasting the water along his jaw, tasting the sweat that trailed down from his nape, tasting everything that was him. He moved his hips. I gasped and moved with him. He thrust again. That fusion growled, its satisfaction growing in the pit of my stomach, hot and fiery and delicious and wanting. Needing. I buried my face in Drew's neck, still moving with him, still feeling the water caress our skin, pooling at out feet, the air thickened with steam and heat.

Drew's name left my lips, when I climaxed in his arms. He came with me shortly after, my thighs around his hips and his mouth against my shoulder, muffling his cry for me. Afterward, we just stood there, with him still inside of me, with the water still over us. Our foreheads touched as we panted. The fusion in me closed its eyes with fulfillment.

By the time we got out, the water was ice cold.

* * *

Drew and I woke to the roar of a drop ship's engine, as the ship flew over the base and probably toward the landing area on the far side. The clock on the nightstand read nine in the morning. We got out of bed and made our way to the base's living room, where Dawn, Paul, Max, Lionel, and Soledad had gathered (Malcolm was asleep in Soledad's room, she informed me), as various soldiers and pokemon walked past and performed the daily chores around the base. Seconds later, Ellis and Moira were escorted to us with the help of a soldier's infernape.

As soon as Ellis saw my eyes – my red eyes – he yelped and backed away. "D-demon!"

Meanwhile, Moira paled. "Oh no..."

"Yeah," I said, flashing an assuring smile at Ellis to try to calm him down, "can you guys figure out why I'm a hybrid?"

Ellis and Moira looked at each other. They both swallowed, like problem children with another hidden secret. "Well..." Moira sighed. "First, tell us what happened at Emerald Harbor."

I nodded and told them everything that had happened, with the help of Drew and the others. (Ellis blinked at Soledad, raising his finger to point out that a person who was supposed to be dead stood right next to me. I brushed that off with a wave of my hand; that would be a story for another time.) Though I hadn't contacted them much since I'd reached the Hoenn Resistance base, I had sent them any information we'd received through the flash drive Soledad had given us, so they knew about Arbiter Corp's plans, including the Hybrid Phase. I told them about our encounter with the Leviathan on the Monoliths, where I'd first tapped into the Hivemind and became part fusion. Then, I told them about the Battle for Emerald Harbor – how I'd managed to turn the fusions Alistair controlled against him and use pokemon-like powers to do such things as encase his arm in ice. (I didn't tell them much about Harley, either; again, we needed to focus on the task at hand.)

When I finished, Ellis and Moira shifted awkwardly. Then, Moira opened her mouth:

"We...we were wondering when this would happen."

I paused. "What?"

Ellis looked at me with a nervous grin. "Busted."

"Alright," Paul said, with a bit of a snarl, "what the hell's going on?"

Moira sighed. "Remember, May, when we told you that we struggled to find the right substances and mechanical therapy over the past five years you were dead to bring you back to life? Well, the truth is, none of them worked. Whenever we managed to stabilize something in your system, it only broke down again. At one point, we were losing hope. But, then..." She looked at Ellis. "We heard about the Hybrid Phase. It was the original plan of Verdana's to become part fusion, and, thus, a head of the Hivemind, so she can eventually kill Kruismara and become the true leader of the fusions. We thought this had died with Verdana, but when we found out that Jericho and the rest of the Arbiter Corporation had perfected the process and consisted mostly of hybrids, we made it a side task of ours to investigate the project, since an effect of being a hybrid can be a fast and successful recovery time from mortal wounds that would otherwise be fatal.

"With Ellis and our pokemon, I managed to ambush a small Arbiter Corp outpost not far from our vault in Slateport that had samples of this altered Chimera Virus. Then, with you hanging on a thread through our machines, we injected you with the Virus."

I shook. "I'm a hybrid, because of you?"

"Please understand, May." Moira frowned. "We were hesitant on telling you, in fear of your reaction. But, it was the only way we could stabilize your system to function on its own. Our methods weren't enough. The Chimera Virus is what brought you back."

"This week just keeps getting better and better," Max said, pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and index finger.

"Ellis and I weren't sure when the Hybrid Phase would kick in, though," Moira said. "But, we were hopeful, when you finally stabilized and we were able to wake you. It just proved that this altered version of the Chimera Virus, when applied at the right time, is a life saver, and it also could give you the upper hand in the fight against Arbiter Corp, since you would technically become a head to the Hivemind like they were. You would be able to control your own fusions and have pokemon-based powers like fusions did. So, in a way-"

"Climbed two mountains with one rope," Ellis said, with that same nervous grin. "You're alive, and you're proof that that icky serum isn't so bad when good people use it!"

I turned away. "I was a test subject to you..."

"Well," Paul said, "when you put it that way, you make them sound like total douche bags."

"Yeah," Dawn added. "May, you wouldn't be here, if it wasn't for the Chimera Virus. As Moira said, it saved your life. It saved a lot of things. We would've died beneath Alistair's powers if you hadn't been there to rival him."

Moira sighed again. "Also, May, your ability to turn Alistair's fusions against him was pivotal. The Hybrid Phase is a complicated process, and even then it's not assured that you'll become a strong enough head to command even more than a few fusions. You were stronger than Alistair, May. You were a higher rank than he was in the Hivemind. I wouldn't be surprised if you'd be able to command an army by now."

I looked at Drew, whose eyes had darkened. "Our original plan," he said, "was to kill off Kruismara, so that, without a head to the Hivemind to keep organization, the fusions would turn on each other. But, you're making it sound that the Hybrid Phase is complete, so that killing Kruismara won't end the war now."

Ellis shook his head.

"It won't," Moira said. "From your story, we can already tell that the council to the Arbiter Corporation has finished the Hybrid Phase. They're the new heads, and though killing off Kruismara is still an important step, the minds of the fusions will only fall to the next head in line, or the head that they're closest to. If you want to end this war, you have to kill all the heads."

Drew closed his eyes. "So that means, if May's a head-"

The alarms went off. I jumped. Warning lights flashed along the ceiling, painting the room in red. It's eerie call echoed from down the hallway.

A soldier ran out of one of the computer rooms. "Sir," he said to Drew, "dozens of fusions are heading to this location right now! The radars are filled!"

Paul snarled. "What? They found us?"

The blood drained from my face. Even though I'd stayed quiet in the Hivemind, was I wrong about the other heads' abilities to find members through it?

"Gear up!" Drew ordered.

Slots in the wall opened, revealing weapons and ammo. Drew, Lionel, Max, Dawn, Soledad, Paul, and I armed ourselves and headed for the door.

* * *

"Oh my Arceus..."

I almost ran into Dawn's back when she stopped in place as soon as she ran out the door. Beside her, Lionel and Max stepped back, while Paul swallowed, his machine gun almost falling out of his hand. Soledad stayed close to Drew, her face white. I stepped forward and looked ahead.

Dozens of fusions ran across the expanse of land that stretched out from the base's front. Scouts, linebackers, lashers, rogues, harpies, operators, all kinds of fusions, even a colossus. They emerged from the forest that surrounded the base, from the dark clouds above, from behind the base, where they almost seemed to surround us. Soldiers stationed on the rooftop of the base froze, their hands shaking.

_No,_ I said to the fusions, to all of them, through my thoughts, though the Hivemind. _Don't attack._

The fusions growled. But, they didn't step forward. They didn't attack Drew and the others. In fact, it seemed as if their red eyes were all focused on me. Their voices invaded my head, all saying the same thing:

_As you command._

Paul raised his gun.

"No," I said to him.

He looked at me – everyone looked at me – and I stared back at the fusion horde before us.

I walked forward. Toward the horde.

The fusions snarled at me. Then, when I was close enough to touch one's face, they parted, allowing me to walk through. As soon as I passed, they enclosed around me, following me, paying attention to only me, because that was what I asked for.

In the center of the horde was a large rock. I walked to it, relaxed; even with the fusions that surrounded me, I didn't feel afraid. The fusion in me growled with the others, like a mother calling her young, and they all listened. They all obeyed. They came, because they knew I needed help. They looked at me as if I was really the fusion that called for them, their red eyes meeting my red-colored irises. When I reached the rock, I stood on top of it, until I could gaze over the entire crowd of fusions that surrounded me, Drew and the others staring from the base's front.

A large roar shook the air. A shadow swam across the ground – across the fusions – until the owner landed behind me, the fusions parting to make room. With another smaller roar, the Leviathan curled its long neck around me, almost protectively, its red eyes flashing. Gently, I raised my hand and brushed my fingers along the feathers on the Leviathan's head. It licked my palm affectionately.

I looked back at the fusions.

_You were stronger than Alistair, May,_ Moira had said. _You were a higher rank than he was in the Hivemind. I wouldn't be surprised if you'd be able to command an army by now._

I smiled, as the Leviathan roared, as the fusions roared.

_My army._

* * *

**AN:** Be sure to check out the sequel, "Finding Home"! And thanks for reading!


End file.
